Risk based inspection of offshore topsides static mechanical equipment in Arctic conditions

As oil and gas industry expands into the Arctic, operators struggle to reduce risks and improve safety, while keeping the cost of inspection and repair to a minimum level. One of the most effective ways to minimize the inspection and repair costs is to apply risk-based inspection (RBI) methods and tools. To identify, assess and map risk of failure of equipment, a number of RBI models, techniques and standards have been developed. Most of the conventional RBI approaches are, however, broad, holistic, practical guides or road-maps, developed for off-the-shelf systems, for non-Arctic offshore operations. The main purpose of this paper is thus to discuss the peculiar modes of failure of topsides static mechanical equipment in the Arctic climate and, to suggest solutions to fill the gaps that are available in the current RBI practices.