Oil Spill Response started off 2010 in avid fashion, holding our first ever Technical Forum in India to actively reach out to our Members and customers in the rapidly developing oil and gas sector.

The focus of the independently-organised event centred upon the state of spill response capability in India, a topic of interest due to increasing oil spill risks commensurate with the growing quantities of oil being produced, refined and transported locally.

Best practices were shared, and awareness was raised regarding preparedness issues and risk assessment. We also had the privilege of having speakers from the Indian Coast Guard, Reliance Industries Ltd, Essar Oil and Indian Oiltanking to bring a local perspective to the scope of discussion.

The forum elicited a strong consensus from industry attendees on the need to evaluate Tiered Response Levels based on risk assessments rather than predefined capability based exclusively on potential spill quantities. Consensus was also reached on the need to address the issue of Tier 2 capability and its potential impact on the operators.

During our stay in India, we also had the chance to view firsthand the Indian Coast Guard’s facilities in Mumbai to better understand their setup and procedures in response to Tier 2 and 3 spills, with a view towards more formal cooperation in future.

Oil Spill Response CEO Archie Smith delivers the keynote address at our first ever Technical Forum in India.
The Forum was attended by more than thirty representatives from local Member companies and industry.
Viewing response equipment at the Indian Coast Guard's base in Mumbai

For more information, please contact Thomas Liebert, Training & Consultancy Manager.