Bergen put on its best face when the Director General of the Norwegian Maritime Directorate arrived at Bergen Yards at Hanøytangen on Askøy for a guided tour of the company’s most modern rig. He was accompanied by Ove Traura, Head of the Vessels and Seafarers Department at the Directorate and Deputy Head of the Offshore Mobile Units section Åse Waage.
“Deepsea Atlantic is an impressive rig, and I’m very happy to have had a chance to see some of the most modern technology in the field and to see what working conditions are like for the crew on a rig of this kind. This visit is important to me because the mobile rigs area is an area that the Norwegian Maritime Directorate follows up very closely,” said Olav Akselsen after the guided tour and meeting with Odfjell Drilling’s management.
Odfjell Drilling was represented by Kjetil Gjersdal, Vice President for Mobile Units Norway; Janike A. Myre, Executive Vice President for QHSE & Business Support; Rune Mesel, Rig Manager for Deepsea Atlantic; Offshore Installation Manager Aksel Øren and Ronny Syslak, Marine Operations Manager.
Positive initiative
”We are very pleased that the Director General took the initiative for this visit to Odfjell Drilling and Deepsea Atlantic. We wish to have a constructive relationship and close dialogue with the authorities. The company has long had good relations with the Norwegian Maritime Directorate, and we have cooperated well, for example on the building of Deepsea Atlantic and Deepsea Stavanger. We appreciate this constructive cooperation and you are a good partner for us,” emphasised Kjetil Gjersdal, Vice President for Mobile Units Norway.
As the supervisory authority for, among other things, mobile units and supply ships, the Norwegian Maritime Directorate administers an extensive set of regulations that are important to the oil industry.
Quick course in drilling
The Director General was given a comprehensive guided tour of the rig, including a quick course in drilling operations and the operation of BOPs, as well as a detailed presentation of Odfjell Drilling and its subsidiaries.
Service is important
The Director General gave Odfjell Drilling a presentation of the Directorate’s focus areas in the time ahead and set out its ambition of being a driving force for innovation and development in the industry.
“The Norwegian Maritime Directorate wants to maintain a dialogue with its users in all areas. We want to be service-minded, but safety comes first, of course,” Mr Akselsen said.
Simplification of the regulations
The Directorate is planning to simplify regulations in the next few years. The planned simplification will make the Fire Regulations, Building Regulations and Qualification Regulations easier to comply with. This is part of the work of increasing user accessibility.
Mr Akselsen started as Director General of the Norwegian Maritime Directorate in January this year and he is taking the opportunity to visit rigs, vessels and organisations for which the Directorate is the responsible authority.
By: Sunniva Seterås, Communication Adviser