Canada–Nova Scotia Offshore Area Petroleum Operations Framework Regulations (SOR/2024-26)

Marginal note:Suspension of well approval

• 20 (1) The Board may suspend a well approval if

  • (a) the operator conducts the well operation other than as described in the application for the well approval;

  • (b) the physical and environmental conditions encountered in the area of the work or activity for which the well approval was granted are more severe than those on the basis of which the manufacturer of any equipment used in the well operation established the equipment’s operating limits; or

  • (c) the operator uses a flow system, flow calculation procedure or flow allocation procedure that has not been approved under subsection 14(2), conducts a formation flow test that has not been approved under subsection 63(5) or engages in commingled production that has not been approved under subsection 80(2).

• Marginal note:Factors for suspension

  (2) In deciding whether to suspend a well approval, the Board must consider

  • (a) the effects or potential effects of the applicable situation referred to in subsection (1) on safety, the environment and the conservation of petroleum resources; and

  • (b) the operator’s history of non-compliance with the requirements of these Regulations, the provisions of Part III of the Act or any requirements that are established by the Board under that Part with respect to well operations.

Marginal note:Revocation of well approval

21 The Board must revoke a well approval if

• (a) the operator fails to remedy the situation that caused the suspension of the well approval as soon as the circumstances permit within 60 days after the date of that suspension unless, on written request by the operator, the Board grants the operator an extension of time to remedy the situation; or

• (b) the operator continues to operate the well despite the suspension of the well approval.

Marginal note:Suspension or abandonment of well

22 If a well approval is revoked, the operator must ensure that the well is suspended or abandoned in accordance with Part 8.

Development Plan

Marginal note:Well approval — subsection 143(1) of Act

23 For the purposes of subsection 143(1) of the Act, a well approval relating to a production project is prescribed.

Marginal note:Concept safety analysis

• 24 (1) The approvals referred to in subsection 143(4) of the Act are subject to the operator’s submission of a concept safety analysis to the Chief Safety Officer at the time the operator submits the application and proposed development plan to the Board under subsection 143(2) of the Act.

• Marginal note:Content

  (2) The concept safety analysis must

  • (a) be based on the development concept chosen by the operator as a general approach and described in Part I of the development plan;

  • (b) take into account all works and activities associated with each phase in the life cycle of the development;

  • (c) determine target levels of safety that are to be achieved to ensure safety and the protection of the environment for all works and activities within each phase of the life cycle of an installation, including its systems and equipment, from the installation’s design up to and including its decommissioning and abandonment;

  • (d) identify all hazards having the potential to cause a major accidental event;

  • (e) include a systematic assessment of the unmitigated risks associated with each of the identified hazards, including the likelihood of a major accidental event occurring and the consequences that would result;

  • (f) identify the control measures that are to be implemented to reduce the risks associated with the identified hazards to a level that is as low as reasonably practicable;

  • (g) identify the effects of any additional risks that may result from the implementation of the identified control measures; and

  • (h) identify all assumptions on which any aspect of the concept safety analysis is based.

• Marginal note:Quantitative and qualitative risk assessments

  (3) The target levels of safety must be based on risk assessments that are

  • (a) quantitative, if it can be demonstrated that input data are available in the quantity and quality necessary to demonstrate the reliability of the results; or

  • (b) qualitative, if the criteria in paragraph (a) are not met or if a quantitative assessment would otherwise be inappropriate.

• Marginal note:Contents of risk assessment

  (4) The operator must include in the risk assessment a description of the circumstances that will necessitate an update of the risk assessment, including changes in

  • (a) the physical and environmental conditions;

  • (b) the operating conditions and the limits taken into account in the design assumptions; and

  • (c) the operating procedures.

• Marginal note:Review of risk assessment

  (5) The operator must update the risk assessment as often as necessary and at least once every five years throughout the life cycle of the development to

  • (a) account for the circumstances described in subsection (4); and

  • (b) ensure the ongoing suitability of the control measures to maintain risks at a level as low as reasonably practicable.

Marginal note:Resource management plan — paragraph 143(3)(b) of Act

• 25 (1) For the purposes of paragraph 143(3)(b) of the Act, Part II of the development plan must contain a resource management plan.

• Marginal note:Contents of resource management plan

  (2) The resource management plan must include a description and analysis of the following:

  • (a) the geological setting and features of the field and of each pool or petroleum-bearing reservoir;

  • (b) the petrophysical data and analytical procedures for each pool;

  • (c) the reservoir engineering data for each pool;

  • (d) estimates of in-place resources and recoverable reserves for each pool, fault block and reservoir subdivision;

  • (e) the proposed reservoir exploitation scheme;

  • (f) potential developments and the reasons why they are not included in the proposed development of the field or pool;

  • (g) any past drilling in the area related to the proposed development of the field or pool as well as the proposed drilling program and typical completion designs for the development wells;

  • (h) the production and export systems related to the proposed development of the field or pool;

  • (i) the expected overall operating efficiency and reliability of the proposed development of the field or pool; and

  • (j) past expenditures and predicted capital and operating cost data, with sufficient detail to permit an economic analysis of the proposed development of the field or pool.

• Marginal note:Organizational structure

  (3) The resource management plan must also contain a description of the operator’s organizational structure as it relates to the implementation of the plan.

PART 5Certificate of Fitness

Application

Marginal note:Prescribed installations — section 143.2 of Act

26 For the purpose of section 143.2 of the Act, a production installation, drilling installation, accommodations installation and diving installation are prescribed installations.

Marginal note:Definition of installation

27 In this Part, installation means an installation referred to in section 26.

Requirements for Certification

Marginal note:Issuance of certificate — requirements and conditions

• 28 (1) Before a certifying authority issues a certificate of fitness in respect of an installation,

  • (a) the person that applies for the certificate must

    • (i) provide the certifying authority with all the information that the certifying authority requires in relation to the application for certification, such as design specifications for the installation, including its systems and equipment,

    • (ii) conduct or assist the certifying authority in conducting any inspection, test or survey that the certifying authority requires,

    • (iii) except in the case of a diving installation, submit to the certifying authority for approval a maintenance program that meets the requirements set out in section 159 and a weight control program that meets the requirements set out in section 161, and

    • (iv) in the case of a diving installation, submit a maintenance program to the certifying authority for approval;

  • (b) the certifying authority must determine that, in relation to the production site, the drill site or the region in which the particular installation is to be operated,

    • (i) the installation, including its systems and equipment, is fit for the purposes for which it is to be used and can be operated without posing a threat to persons or the environment,

    • (ii) in the case of an installation other than a diving installation, the requirements set out in the following provisions have been met:

      • (A) the provisions of these Regulations listed in Part 1 of Schedule 1, and

      • (B) the provisions of the Canada–Nova Scotia Offshore Area Occupational Health and Safety Regulations listed in Part 2 of Schedule 1, other than paragraph 22(5)(b), subsection 28(3), paragraph 28(5)(a), subsection 171(3) and paragraphs 172(1)(a), (g), (j) to (m), (o) and (p), (2)(e) and (3)(c) and (f) of those Regulations,

    • (iii) in the case of a diving installation, the requirements set out in the following provisions have been met:

      • (A) section 174 and the provisions of Part 9, and

      • (B) the provisions of the Canada–Nova Scotia Offshore Area Occupational Health and Safety Regulations listed in Part 2 of Schedule 1, and

    • (iv) the installation, including its systems and equipment, will continue to meet the requirements set out in subparagraph (i) and the applicable requirements set out in subparagraph (ii) or (iii), as the case may be, for the time set out in the certificate of fitness if

      • (A) the installation — other than a diving installation — including its systems and equipment, is inspected, monitored, tested and maintained in accordance with the maintenance program and is maintained in accordance with the weight control program referred to in subparagraph (a)(iii), or

      • (B) the diving installation, including its systems and equipment, is maintained in accordance with the maintenance program referred to in subparagraph (a)(iv);

  • (c) the certifying authority must

    • (i) in the case of an installation other than a diving installation, determine that the maintenance program and the weight control program are adequate to ensure the continued integrity of the installation, including its systems and equipment, and approve them, and

    • (ii) in the case of a diving installation, determine that the maintenance program is adequate to ensure the continued integrity of the installation, including its systems and equipment, and approve it; and

  • (d) the certifying authority must carry out the scope of work in respect of which the certificate of fitness is issued.

• Marginal note:Substitution — section 155 and subsection 210.07(1) of Act

  (2) For the purposes of subparagraphs (1)(b)(ii) and (iii), the certifying authority may substitute, for any equipment, methods, measures, standards or other things required under any regulation referred to in those subparagraphs, any other equipment, methods, measures, standards or other things the use of which is authorized by the Chief Safety Officer or the Chief Conservation Officer, as the case may be, under section 155 of the Act or subsection 210.07(1) of the Act.

• Marginal note:Limitations

  (3) The certifying authority must set out in any certificate of fitness that it issues the details of any limitation on the operation of the installation that is necessary to ensure that the installation, including its systems and equipment, meets the requirements set out in paragraph (1)(b).

Marginal note:Conflict of interest — paragraph 143.2(4)(b) of Act

• 29 (1) For the purposes of paragraph 143.2(4)(b) of the Act, the extent to which a certifying authority may participate in the design, construction or installation of an installation in respect of which a certificate of fitness is issued is as follows:

  • (a) the certifying authority or one of its subsidiaries or affiliates may be the certifying authority or classification society for the original design, construction or installation of the installation or any modification to it; and

  • (b) a subsidiary or affiliate of the certifying authority may participate in the design, construction or installation of the installation to any other extent as long as it does not participate in any of the certification or verification activities in respect of the installation.

• Marginal note:Notice of non-compliance

  (2) The certifying authority must monitor for any participation beyond that described in subsection (1) and must, without delay, inform the person that applied for the certificate and the Board of any such participation.

Marginal note:Certification plan

• 30 (1) A person that applies for a certificate of fitness must submit a certification plan to the Chief Safety Officer and to the certifying authority for the purposes of the approval of the scope of work under section 31.

• Marginal note:Contents

  (2) The certification plan must include the following documents and information:

  • (a) a description of the installation that is to be certified, including its systems and equipment;

  • (b) a list of the standards that will apply to the installation to be certified, including its systems and equipment, and a list of the standards on which the measures to reduce risks that are described in the safety plan and the environmental protection plan are based or, if there are no applicable standards, any studies and analyses that demonstrate that the measures to be implemented are adequate to reduce the risks to safety and the environment to a level that is as low as reasonably practicable or to minimize the risk of hazards, as the case may be; and

  • (c) other than in the case of a diving installation, a list of all safety-critical elements, as well as a description of how the associated performance standards are to be developed.

Marginal note:Scope of work

• 31 (1) A certifying authority must submit to the Chief Safety Officer for approval a scope of work that takes into account the certification plan.

• Marginal note:Contents of scope of work

  (2) The scope of work must include

  • (a) a description of the following activities to be conducted by the certifying authority:

    • (i) activities to verify compliance with the requirements referred to in paragraph 28(1)(b),

    • (ii) activities to verify the validity of the certificate of fitness, and

    • (iii) any additional activities to be carried out before the renewal of the certificate; and

  • (b) a schedule of the activities referred to in paragraph (a).

• Marginal note:Approval of scope of work

  (3) The Chief Safety Officer must approve the scope of work if the Chief Safety Officer determines that

  • (a) in the case of any installation, the scope of work

    • (i) is sufficiently detailed to permit the certifying authority to determine whether the requirements referred to in paragraph 28(1)(b) are met,

    • (ii) describes the type and extent of reporting in respect of continual monitoring of the certification process being undertaken by the certifying authority, and

    • (iii) demonstrates how the certifying authority has complied with section 29;

  • (b) in the case of an installation other than a diving installation, the scope of work

    • (i) provides the means for determining whether

      • (A) the environmental criteria for the region or site and the loads estimated for the installation are correct,

      • (B) the list of safety-critical elements included in the certification plan is complete and the elements are in place and functioning as intended,

      • (C) in respect of any installation referred to in a development plan, the concept safety analysis submitted under section 24 meets the requirements set out in that section,

      • (D) in respect of a new installation, the installation has been constructed in accordance with the quality assurance program referred to in section 100,

      • (E) the operations manual meets the requirements set out in section 157, and

      • (F) the installation’s construction and installation, including the materials used for those purposes, meet the design specifications,

    • (ii) includes the list of performance standards and methods that the certifying authority will use to verify compliance with those standards and to verify whether the installation, including its systems and equipment, continues to be fit for the purposes for which it is to be used, and

    • (iii) provides the means for determining whether the provisions listed in Schedule 2 have been complied with and whether the structures, systems and equipment referred to in those provisions are in place and functioning as intended; and

  • (c) in the case of a diving installation, the scope of work provides the means for determining whether the processes referred to in subparagraph 4(1)(m)(iii) and paragraph 4(1)(v) that are included in the operator’s management system have been implemented.