Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what criteria they plan to use to decide whether Royal Dutch Shell will be permitted to leave behind underwater storage tanks and concrete rig supports in dismantling the Brent Oilfield; and how they intend to ensure that the dismantling is managed in accordance with Article 5 of Annex III to the OSPAR Convention.

The Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy will consider the Brent field decommissioning proposal based on the evidence presented in the decommissioning plan and the supporting information provided in the decommissioning plan package. The proposal to leave the Brent installations in situ will be considered in accordance with OSPAR Decision 98/3 on the disposal of disused offshore installations. In doing so, the Department will apply Annex 2 of OSPAR decision 98/3 which sets out the framework for the assessment of the proposals for the disposal at sea of discussed offshore installations.