DNV launches guidelines for shale gas risk management

Norway-based Det Norsk Veritas AS, one of the world's leading shipping classification societies and providers of risk management services, launched its industry guidance for shale gas field development and operations in Beijing on Thursday, with hopes that it will be accepted and adopted by Chinese companies in the oil and gas sector.

The guidance recommends risk management practices for oil and gas companies during shale gas operations, covering issues such as health, safety and environmental protection.

"This is the first comprehensive (health and safety guidance) document for shale gas operations in the world," Steinar Thon, associate director of Risk Management Solutions at DNV, said at a news conference in Beijing.

Apart from the United States, shale gas remains an emerging industry in most parts of the world. In some European countries, extraction of shale gas has led to political debate and caused public concern.

Before coming to Beijing, the Norwegian company released the guidance in the United Kingdom and the US and it was "positively received" by the industry, the company said.

In the meantime, the company said China has great potential for the shale gas industry.

"China has the world's largest shale gas deposits, and, despite the challenges it faces, it is still a very important market," said Tor Svensen, president of DNV Maritime and Oil & Gas.

In the 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-15), China aims to produce as much as 6.5 billion cubic meters of shale gas annually by 2015. This is equivalent to 3 percent of the country's total projected gas production in that year. The country also plans to produce 100 billion cubic meters of shale gas by 2020.