Process Safety in Drilling Operations

Oil companies and drilling contractors alike are responsible for convincing the public that industry can drill safely without causing personnel injury or environmental damage. Incidents not only can affect a company's reputation and image; but also can result in asset damage and production losses. Maintaining safe, reliable operations is corporate social responsibility. While regulators and other government entities play a role, it's ultimately the public that influences a company's license to operate and ability to perform drilling operations are acceptable in particular communities. This paper presents a template for implementing a process safety management program for land-based oil and gas drilling operations; particularly in developing Latin America countries where local performance standards are not yet well-established or mature.