Petroleum

Key operational activities and priorities

Find out more about our key operational activities and priorities within the petroleum sector

Certificate of fitness and verification schemes for offshore installations

Permit operators of offshore petroleum production installations or drilling contractors of non-production offshore installations, must have a current certificate of fitness for the installation, unless you have a recognised verification scheme

Well operations and well examination schemes

Permit operators of well operations have duties relating to the safety of all well operations. This covers the well’s lifecycle, along with specific well operations.

Government management of the petroleum industry

Six government agencies and 16 regional councils carry out specific roles and responsibilities in managing petroleum and mineral exploration and production in New Zealand waters.

Petroleum guidance

We have developed guidance on a number of issues included in the Health and Safety at Work (Petroleum Exploration and Extraction) Regulations 2016

Petroleum and geothermal industry alerts

Links to safety alerts that might be of interest to workers in the petroleum and geothermal sectors.

Safety case submissions

Safety cases must be submitted to WorkSafe by a permit operator of a relevant production installation or a drilling contractor for a non-production installation

Regulatory framework

In our work with the petroleum industry, we enforce the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 (HSWA) and the Health and Safety at Work (Hazardous Substances) Regulations 2017

Major accident prevention policy and safety case requirements

Permit operators of lower-tier petroleum production installations must have a Major Accident Prevention Policy (MAPP). Permit operators or drilling contractors of any other type of installation, must have an accepted safety case

Transmission pipelines - Certificate of fitness for high-pressure gas and liquids

Owners/operators of pipelines must have a current certificate of fitness for that pipeline.

Publications

Read our high hazards industry publications, including our latest major hazard facilities, petroleum and geothermal annual report.