Health, safety and environmental management for the 21st century: my experience in Kazakhstan

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Introduction

This article summarizes my experiences in developing a highly successful HSE (Health, Safety and Environment Management) program within PetroKazakhstan (a Canadian-owned oil company) which had very few HSE systems and programs before I arrived. . In this document, I try to present as clear a picture as possible of where the organization, PetroKazakhstan, was when I arrived and what actions I took on the path to HSE success.

My arrival:

I had never been to Kazakhstan or any of the former Soviet republics before. I researched the country online and discovered that Kazakhstan was not the barren arctic wasteland I had imagined, but a beautiful and diverse country with mountains and plains (called steppes) and even a part of the Caspian Sea, the largest in the world. fresh water lake PetroKazkhstan’s headquarters was located in Almaty, a beautiful city that was a mix of Asian and European architecture and culture.

My first day on the job was January 4, 2004. Like all new staff, I had to meet the people, understand the organization, and find a place to reside. I rented a nice apartment in a perfect location called Samal 2. This area is close to the mountains and my apartment was next to RamStore, a shopping center with a grocery store which made my initial experience very pleasant. I only had a 2 minute walk to meet my needs.

The job:

My position, Director of HSE, was a new position reporting to the President. Previously, there was a Director of HSE and Training located in the oil field, but his role was mainly related to training. My first assignment was to go to the oil fields and see what was going on there and talk to people from both HSE and operations. PetroKazakhstan (PK) had 2 main operating groups, one called PKKR, which was the oil producing side, and the other called PKOP, the refiner. PK also had rail freight terminals, oil storage facilities, and retail gas stations.

My visits:

I had decided before leaving on my field visit that I:

Meet as many key people as possible and hopefully persuade them to tell me about HSE in their areas, the good, the bad and the ugly.

Visit oilfield operating sites and see for yourself, assessing hazards and the risk measures being taken to control them.

Review company HSE policies and procedures.

Make a summary of the gaps I saw and evaluate the gaps vs. best HSE management systems in the industry

Our 10-point HSE plan (based on a gap analysis against industry leaders) included:

Improve HSE management leadership: We needed to understand how company managers/supervisors viewed their role in HSE. We then needed to develop workshops that identified key HSE roles and responsibilities for managers and supervisors. Performance targets for HSE would be included in management’s Annual Performance Review.

Incorporate risk management and assessment: Hazard identification training should be provided for all workers, as well as Introduction to risk management for all managers and supervisors.
Improve HSE training: HSE training plans were not developed for each site based on risk. New risk-based training plans for workers needed to be developed, as well as training for supervisors on how to assess their workers on HSE performance.

Develop HSE systems for contractors: There were no HSE management systems for contractors. HSE programs for contractors were identified as a critical need. Hiring an experienced specialist HSE contractor was suggested to start the programme.

Develop safety by design: PK had relied on EPC contractors to ensure safety by design in the past. A “safety by design plan” would require uniform safety design procedures for all future EPC contracts. A key requirement would be a mandatory design safety plan.

Update operations and maintenance plans – There were many gaps in operator training, as well as a lack of standard operating procedures (SOPs) on many key job tasks. A contractor was proposed to develop operator training and SOPs. Maintenance and integrity procedures needed to be reviewed and updated. A proposal for a computerized integrity maintenance system was suggested.

New reporting and documentation system – Various HSE reports are generated within PK, but not to uniform standards and not combined for senior management review. A centralized and uniform HSE database and reporting system was proposed.

Improve crisis and emergency plans: In general, the emergency response plans were very good and complied with Kazakh law. However, PK lacked a corporate crisis management plan. We proposed that all local site emergency response plans be reviewed and updated and that workers be trained in accordance with these plans. The plans must also be translated into the two languages ​​used in the field, ie English and Russian. Hiring an experienced emergency response consultant to develop a Corporate Crisis Management Plan was seen as a logical way forward.

Revamp Incident Investigation and Prevention: Since there were no uniform accident investigation procedures or accident reporting forms, we proposed that new incident investigation procedures and forms be developed. Training would be provided to all safety/environmental engineers and supervisors on root cause analysis and accident investigation principles.

HSE System Assessment and Improvement: Plans were to be developed for HSE system audits that would review these 10 items annually and report the results to senior management.

What did we do first?

When faced with 25-30 gaps in the HSE system, what would you do first? I’ve always gone back to my basic core belief that you prioritize based on risk. This is what we did. For example, the refinery had no PPE (personal protective equipment) requirements, so we wrote a PPE regulation and began PPE procurement. At the same time, we secured a training company to come for PPE training. The accident reporting and investigation system was not a reliable indicator of accidents in the field. Very few contractor accidents were reported and few supervisors knew how to complete an accident investigation form. The typical cause of an accident was “negligence.” The typical corrective action was “send the injured to the clinic.” The same accidents repeated themselves over and over again. We immediately reviewed the accident procedure and forms and then implemented an incident investigation training program. A fatal accident in February 2004 prompted me to review and update the Hot Work Permit system and begin implementing HSE Management for Contractors. Until then, contractors were on their own in how to get the job done. The fatal accident changed all that. We began by issuing rules from senior management that all contractor activities would be overseen by a local site supervisor. We also changed the Permitting system to require local site supervisors to sign off and audit the work. In the meantime, the Permit system was reviewed and training provided.

On a broader scale, he knew the company needed to understand its risks and how to manage them. I hired a respected risk management company to perform a QRA (Quantitative Risk Assessment) and update our Emergency Response System. The QRA would identify our core process and HSE risks and provide recommendations to reduce these risks. Our Emergency Response System was basically limited to what the government of Kazakhstan required. We needed a corporate crisis management plan that would monitor and direct actions at the time of a major incident.

These necessary steps were fully endorsed by PK senior management and they provided their full support to ensure the 10 Points to HSE Success were implemented.

Summary and results

By the end of the first year, each phase of PetroKazakhstan’s HSE performance had improved significantly. The 10 elements of the PK HSE Safety Management System were implemented with improved HSE, morale and productivity results. The keys to the success of PK’s HSE were:

– Identification of gaps HSE vs. Industry Best Practices

Developing a “Fit for Purpose” HSE Management System

Participation and support of senior management

Measurement of HSE gaps, assessment of gaps with corrective actions taken

Celebrate HSE Success Often

Note: I handed over my HSE Director position to my HSE Deputy Director (a local Kazakh) after the assignment year ended in December 2004. I left with the confidence that PK would become an industry leader in HSE . In August 2005, the China National Petroleum Corporation acquired PetroKazakhstan.

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