Jointly organised by the Centre for International Law (CIL), Tropical Marine Science Institute (TMSI), and the Centre for Offshore Engineering (CORE), this multi-disciplinary workshop on the prospects for Rigs-to-Reefs in Southeast Asia for fisheries, marine tourism and biodiversity took place on 12-13 November 2013. More than 80 delegates from the government, offshore industry and academia attended the workshop with large delegations from Malaysia and Thailand. Leading researchers from Australia and the Gulf of Mexico also came to share their research.

This gathering was funded under the NUS Climate Change and Sustainable Environment Research Initiative and was sponsored by the Universiti Teknologi Petronas (UTP). It followed a similar event hosted by UTP in October 2013 in Kuala Lumpur, which was supported by CIL.

This workshop explored the opportunities created by the imminent decommissioning of 500+ offshore installations in the region (due for retirement after 20+ years of services). This decommissioning obligation coupled with the destruction of many reef habitats (whether directly from human uses or from environmental stresses) and the degradation of fisheries stocks create a compelling case for the re-use of offshore rigs as large scale artificial reefs to enhance fisheries and marine biodiversity. The workshop was designed to explore the feasibility of this idea and improve the visibility of this solution among all relevant stakeholders.

As a result of active discussions among the participants, ties have been established to improve knowledge sharing across Southeast Asia not only on offshore decommissioning issues but also on the monitoring of marine life on and around offshore platforms and on rigs-to-reefs research as a decommissioning alternative. A report will be produced in order to share the content and conclusions of the workshop and to provide a basis on which discussions can continue.

Direct any question on this on-going research topic to Youna Lyons: younalyons@nus.edu.sg.

1. Prof. CHOU Loke Ming – Disused rigs – Life after oil
2. Dr. Simon FUNGE-SMITH – Capture fisheries in the South China Sea
3. Dr. Greg STUNZ – Oil and Gas Platforms as Artificial Reefs in the Gulf of Mexico
4. Dr. Ashley FOWLER – Beyond production vs attraction: The potential environmental benefits of a ‘rigs-to-reefs’ program
5. Mr. Ahmad Bin ALI – Big size artificial reefs for fisheries enhancement in Malaysia
6. Mr. Amnaj SIRIPECH – Progress in the installation of scale artificial reefs in Thailand
7. Mr. Daud Bin AWANG – Oil Rig as Artificial Reef: Example of Baram 8
8. Dr. Noor Amila WAN ABDULLAH ZAWAWI – Rigs to Reef Scenario in Malaysia
9. Mr. Thorwald STERKER – Rigs to Reef Prospects in SE Asia Issues with large jackets
10. Prof. Robert BECKMAN – The International Legal Regime Governing the Disposal and Re-Use of Offshore Platforms
11. Prof. Richard MCLAUGHLIN – ‘Idle Iron’ versus ‘Rigs-to-Reefs’ Surviving Conflicting Policy Mandates in the Gulf of Mexico
12. Ms. Youna LYONS – Rigs-to-Reef in Southeast Asia: Legal and policy issues
13. Mr. Nor Isham ABDULLAH – Overview of Decommissioning in Malaysia
14. Mr. Claudio GENTILE – Views from the industry on Rigs-to-Reefs as a decommissioning alternative
15. Dr. Ashley FOWLER – How to you determine when to choose a rigs-to-reef decommissioning option: A proposal based on decision science
16. ADAM ZECHARIAH – Rigs-To-Reefs – Risk Management Considerations

To download the Workshop programme and other materials, click on the links below.

eFlyer

Programme

Points of Discussion

Abstracts

Profiles