Evacuation of Statoil Gas Plant After Leak

At 10:30 pm local time on Thursday night, a gas leak was reported at Statoil’s Kårstø processing plant in Norway. 

All personnel have been accounted for and brought to safety. 

The emergency response team is now obtaining overview of the situation and mobilizing resources to manage the situation. 

The Kårstø processing plant north of Stavanger plays a key role in the transport and treatment of gas and condensate (light oil) from important areas on the Norwegian continental shelf.

First gas arrived at the plant in 1985, and dry gas began to be dispatched by pipeline to Emden in Germany in October of the same year.  The Statpipe trunkline system carries gas from the North Sea to Kårstø.

The Kårstø facility also receives gas from Åsgard and other fields in the Norwegian Sea through the Åsgard Transport trunkline.

In opertion since October 2000, the Åsgard section of the plant processes this gas to meet sales specifications.