Octane Energy’s Jared Blong addresses US Congressional subcommittee
Jared Blong, CEO and President of Midland, Texas-based Octane Energy and past Chairman of the IADC Permian Basin Chapter, recently addressed the US House Committee on Small Business Subcommittee on Agriculture, Energy and Trade. IADC arranged the testimony. Witnesses at the subcommittee’s 26 June hearing, titled “The New Domestic Energy Paradigm: Downstream Challenges for Small Energy Businesses,” focused on the need to reduce impediments facing the energy sector and lifting the ban on crude oil exports as a part of a comprehensive energy policy.
The hearing examined the potential mismatch between the supplies of oil produced and the capacity of the refining sector to turn domestic crude oil into economically useful products. Committee members examined the impact this imbalance has on small businesses in the energy sector.
“I believe, as many do, that America has entered a new era of energy stewardship,” Mr Blong said. “Through technological breakthroughs in precision drilling and completion techniques, we can develop resources previously thought unreachable, unattainable and uneconomic. And we can do so while maintaining the highest degree of environmental stewardship, safety and community compassion.”
IADC encourages members to participate in Congressional hearings. For more information, contact Bill Tanner at bill.tanner@iadc.org.
US Fish and Wildlife Service to revisit listing bird on threatened species list
The US Fish and Wildlife Service is revisiting its proposal from last fall to list a subpopulation of the greater sage grouse found in central California and southwest Nevada as threatened. The service is also reopening a proposal to designate 1.8 million acres as critical habitat to help save the bird, according to a notice published in the 8 April Federal Register. A final determination will be made in April 2015.
OGP publishes Report 501: Crew Resource Management for Well Operations Teams
OGP recently published Report 501: Crew Resource Management for Well Operations Teams. The report is a result of a project undertaken by the University of Aberdeen on behalf of OGP. The aim was to develop a recommended syllabus for crew resource management training customized to the needs of well operations teams.
Click here to access the report.
Arctic Council issues report on systems safety management and safety culture
The Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment Working Group, a working group under the Arctic Council, recently published Arctic Offshore Oil and Gas Guidelines: Systems Safety Management and Safety Culture Report.
The document enhances and supplements the 2009 Arctic Council’s Arctic Offshore Oil and Gas Guidelines by focusing on providing tools and approaches for reducing the threat of catastrophic effects of major oil and gas-related accidents. It provides more targeted guidance on protecting the marine environment from major accidents by improving safety management systems and safety culture in Arctic offshore petroleum operations.
Areas recommended for more focused safety guidance are:
• Continuous improvement;
• Risk assessment/hazard identification;
• Management of change;
• Training and competence for the Arctic;
• Accountability and responsibility;
• Operating procedures;
• Quality assurance/mechanical integrity;
• Document and reporting; and
• Communications.
Click here for more information and to access the report.
