Forties Echo Platform Shut Down After Collision

The Forties Echo platform in the North Sea has been shut down after it was hit by a supply vessel, the Sea Falcon, on Monday morning, a spokesman for operator Apache North Sea said. The Sea Falcon was allegedly offloading cargo when the collision happened. There have been no reported injuries.

Fifteen workers were taken off the platform and transferred to the nearby Forties Bravo platform as a precaution following the collision. Another 15 remain on the platform.

The spokesman also stated that emergency procedures were taken and the platform was shut down. He confirmed that there had been no leak of hydrocarbons, but was unable to give a restart date for production.

Apache North Sea, part of Apache Corp, is investigating the extent of any damage, but there was no structural risk to the rig.

"An initial visual inspection has been carried out from the platform's standby vessel and a specialist inspection team is being mobilized to assess the damage to the platform," Apache said in a statement. “Apache’s priority is to work with the authorities to ensure the safety of all platform personnel. A relatives’ response team and contractors’ liaison team have been mobilized.”

The Forties oil field is located 110 miles north-east of Aberdeen, in the UK sector of the central North Sea.

Forties is one of the four crude streams that underpins the Brent crude oil futures benchmark.