Abstract
Sarawak Shell Berhad (SSB) and Sabah Shell Petroleum Company (SSPC) are oil and gas exploration and production Companies working under a Production Sharing Contract (PSC) for PETRONAS. They operate or control the activities of Drilling-Rigs, Barges, vessels and approximately 100 Production Facilities offshore Sarawak and Sabah. Additionally they operate three onshore oil and gas terminals to treat the products prior to export.
Current production levels are in the order of 200,000 bbl/day of oil and 1000 million scf/day of gas. The Company employs some 3,000 Company personnel and approximately 2,600 contractor employees. With this spread of activities and this number of people there are many areas and operations being conducted on a daily basis which have the potential for accidents to occur. Whilst the programme and procedures stated in this paper are generally applicable throughout the Shell Group the references to Shell should be construed in this context as being relevant to SSB/SSPC activities only.
Shell has always been conscious of the need for improved safety and reduction of the risk of accidents throughout its operations and in 1984 it embarked on an intensive campaign of Enhanced Safety Management (ESM), which is modelled on the approach taken by Du Pont Organisation. Du Pont are the world renowned leaders in Safety Management and extensive use was made of their Safety Consultancy Division to establish Shell's ESM Programme. This programme has brought about a major improvement in Safety performance which is both sustainable and ongoing. Experience has shown that we can summarize the essentials of ESM to be.
