Baghjan Gas Well Blowout: NGT probe findings on “cause of gas and oil leak” will be critical for Oil India Limited to follow up on its show cause notice to John Energy Limited for the blowout

The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on June 24 constituted an eight-member committee headed by Justice B.P. Katakey, a former judge of the Gauhati High Court, to examine the cause of Baghjan Gas Well blowout near Dibru-Saikhowa National Park in Tinsukia district in Assam and subsequent fire and extent of loss and damage caused to the human life, wildlife and environment.

The NGT has also ordered the Oil India Limited (OIL) to deposit an initial amount of Rs 25 Crore with the district magistrate, Tinsukia “in view of the prima facie case” made against the public sector oil company on the extent of the damage caused.

Two of the initial 13 terms of reference set for the committee by the NGT are to find out “Cause of gas and oil leak” and identify “Persons responsible for the fire incidents and the cause of failure to prevent the incident.”

The committee’s findings in respect of these term of reference will be critical for OIL to follow up on its show cause notice to John Energy Limited, in which OIL had alleged that gross negligence led to the blowout at the workover well. The workover operations commenced on April 27, 2020. It will also be critical in deciding a legal question as to who is the actual custodian of an oil or gas well, during a workover operation carried out with chartered hired rig under a contract.

The blowout happened at Baghjan producing well no 5 under Baghjan oilfield of OIL on May 27 when workover operations were carried out by chartered hired rig owned by the Gujarat-based company John Energy Limited. ( Click this link to know more about blowout and how it occurs https://www.nezine.com/info/SUJ4V2hqMGFJTzNxa0IxRk56L2pjdz09/baghjan-gas-well-blowout:-drilling-experts-explain-what-is-blow-out-and-how-it-occurs.html )

Sources in the OIL, however, told nezine.com that John Energy has, in written response to the show cause notice and subsequent correspondences, denied any negligence on its part.

“On 27^th May, 2020, at around 10.30 A.M., subsequent to the cement plug job carried out on 26.05.2020 to facilitate replacement of the tubing spool, uncontrolled flow of natural gas and condensate occurred at the well without BOP in place, leading to complete loss of well control and blowout, “states the show cause notice issued by General Manager, Drilling- Workover Operations to John Energy Limited on May 28.

“Prima facie there appears to be gross negligence on your part in failing to follow standard procedure, carry out mandatory checks in compliance to safety regulations and take necessary precautions prior to carrying out wellhead operations involving nipping down of the Blowout Preventer (BOP) stack and/or complete failure to recognise a well kick and take timely corrective action, leading to complete loss of well control and blowout of the well,” alleged OIL in the notice.

The blowout well caught fire on June 9 in which two OIL employees lost their lives, several injured, affected people in the surrounding villages. The fire has been raging for past 18 days since then even as experts flown in from Singapore are making efforts to cap the well. Please read our previous article on what is a blowout and how it occurs in this link : https://www.nezine.com/info/SUJ4V2hqMGFJTzNxa0IxRk56L2pjdz09/baghjan-gas-well-blowout:-drilling-experts-explain-what-is-blow-out-and-how-it-occurs.html

The OIL awarded the contract (No 6113317/CDG0925P19/DRLG/19) to John Energy Limited vide Letter of Award No. (OIL/CONT/LOA/G/383/2019-20 for hiring the services of two 550 HP capacity workover rig packages. The value of the contract was 7,196,603 US dollars and the period was for three years.

Sources in OIL also claimed that those in charge of workover operations had around 25 minutes to the put the BOP back in place after detection of the well kick while 10 minutes was sufficient for trained personnel to do that. The OIL has also placed two of its officials under suspension for “gross negligence.” The workover operations were carried out under the supervision of OIL.

The Applicants argued that due to negligence and lapses on the part of the OIL, the community as well as the biodiversity of the entire Dibru-Saikhowa Biosphere Reserve is under threat of irreparable damage. They also submitted before the NGT that “the blow-out has left behind huge volumes of residue as gas condensate which is a mixture of chemical compounds that are toxic for land and vegetation and is a known carcinogen. The blowout is not only hazardous to the health of the people but also severely affect their livelihood whose occupation is mainly agriculture, fishing, and animal rearing.”

Initial terms of reference for probe panel set up by NGT are:

• Cause of gas and oil leak.

• Extent of loss and damage caused to human life, wildlife, environment.

• Damage and health hazard caused to the public.

• Whether any contamination has been caused to water, air, and soil of the area of the oil well and its vicinity.

• Extent of contamination of water of the Dibru river due to the oil spill.

• For the purpose of (iv) and (v) above, it may be necessary to get the air quality monitored and, samples of soil and ground water of the area as well as the water of river Dibru downstream of the oil spill tested;

• Impact on the eco sensitive zone of the Dibru-Saikhowa National Park and Maguri-Motapung Wetland.

• Impact on agriculture, Fishery, and domestic animals in the area.

• Whether there was any mitigation measure put in place by OIL to offset the incidents such as the one in question.

• Persons responsible for the fire incidents and the cause of failure to prevent the incident.

• Assessment of compensation for the victims and cost of restitution of the damage caused to property and the environment.

• Preventive and remedial measures.

• Any other incidental or allied issues.

The NGT passed the order on two applications filed before it – one by environmentalist Bonani Kakkar and another by Wild Life and Environment Conservation Organisation.

An official release by OIL on June 25 states that heavy rains disrupted ongoing operations to douse the fire by capping the well. All connecting roads have been submerged with flood water and a bridge between Doomdooma and Baghjan got damaged due to heavy rainfall. All movement over the bridge has stopped which is hampering the movement of men and material to the well site, it adds. About 7000 people have been forced to take shelter in 12 relief camps following the blowout and subsequent fire.

Sushanta Talukdar

Photographs courtesy Oil India Limited