API ANNOUNCES NEW STANDARDS FOR OFFSHORE OIL AND GAS STRUCTURES

By TONI ELLINGTON

The American Petroleum Institute (“API”) has published five new recommended practices for the design, construction, and maintenance of offshore oil and gas drilling and production structures.  API has been publishing standards for the oil and gas industry since 1924.  Its standards are accredited by the American National Standards Institute.

The new standards are as follows:

• RP 2A-WSD, 22nd Edition, “Planning, Designing, and Constructing Fixed Offshore Platforms – working Stress-Design.”  This serves as a guide for designing and constructing new offshore fixed platforms and also for relocating existing platforms.  This standard replaces previous standards published by API.

• RP 2MET, 1st Edition, “Derivation of Metocean Design and Operating Conditions.”  This standard is a new API standard, which sets the general requirements for using meteorological and oceanographic conditions to inform the design, construction, and operation of all types of offshore oil and gas structures.

• RP 2GEO, 1st Edition, “Geotechnical and Foundation Design consideration.”  This is a new API standard.  It contains requirements and recommendation for applying aspects of geosciences and foundation engineering to a broader range of offshore structures.

• RP 2EQ, 1st Edition, “Seismic Design Procedures and Criteria for Offshore Structures.”  This is a new API standard which lists requirements for defining the design procedures and criteria for earthquake-resistant offshore structures, along with discussing the effects of seismic events on floating and partially buoyant structures.

• RP 2SIM, 1st Edition, “Structural Integrity Management of Fixed Offshore Structures.”  This is a new API standard which specifically addresses the evaluation of structural damage and inspections above and below the water, along with assessing a structure’s fitness for purpose, assessing risk, and decommissioning a structure.

API represents all segments of America’s oil and gas industry, with over 600 members.  According to API, the new standards were developed in response to new technologies and improvements in offshore resources. The standards and the announcement can be found on API’s website at www.api.org, or contact Toni Ellington at (504) 599-8500 for questions.