Spill Notification Point

Competent National Authority

Response Arrangements

The Ministry of Municipality and Environment is the competent national authority for oil spill response. In coordination with the Ministry, the Oil Spill & Emergency Response Division (OSERD) of Qatar Petroleum (QP) has the responsibility to direct, lead, coordinate and manage compliance and oil spill preparedness, response and cooperation for QP and the State of Qatar.

QP OSERD provides the On–Scene Commander (OSC) for all major spills within Qatar, with jurisdiction for both offshore and onshore operations. 

QP OSERD is the designated spill notification point for the State of Qatar. All oil spills incidents are required to be reported to Qatar Petroleum Communication Control Room (A7S).

For spills resulting from QP’s joint venture operations, under Functional Relationship Agreements, the joint venture is required to respond but is able to call on QP OSERD for assistance when necessary. 

QP has oil spill contingency plans for all main operational locations, however, a National Oil Spill Contingency Plan has yet to receive formal approval from the Ministry of Municipality and Environment.

Response Policy

Contingency Plans prescribe containment and recovery as the preferred response technique, with provision for the use of dispersants. Dispersants may be used in designated offshore areas however, they may not be used in areas of shallow water, areas with poor water exchange, in the vicinity of coral reefs, mangroves or industrial water intakes. Only dispersants approved by the Regional Organization for the Protection of the Marine Environment (ROPME) may be used. 

A hazardous waste facility is located at Mesaieed Industrial City with significant oily water storage capacity available at a nearby tank farm. High temperature incineration capabilities also exist in-country.

Equipment

Government & Private

QP owns and operates four key stockpiles of oil spill response equipment, strategically positioned at Mesaieed Industrial City, Ras Laffan Industrial City, Halul Terminal and Dukhan Concession Area. As per Functional Relationship Agreements with QP, Joint Ventures are required to own and operate resources capable of responding to Tier 1 incidents.

For major incidents, Qatar is able to call upon resources from Oil Spill Response Limited (OSRL). Furthermore, resources from neighbouring Gulf States can be requested by the government of Qatar through the Marine Emergency Mutual Aid Centre (MEMAC) in Bahrain, as part of ROPME.

Aircraft for aerial surveillance may be available from the Gulf Helicopters Company (GHC) which operates a fleet of twin turbine helicopters.

Previous Spill Experience

Qatar gained considerable experience of major pollution following the HASBAH 6 well blow-out off Saudi Arabia (1980) and from the Nowruz oil field (1983). On both occasions, booms were used to protect water intakes and other sensitive areas. Novel shoreline clean-up methods were employed using a system of dykes and sluice gates to retain oil in man-made lagoons. 

Compensation

* not yet in force 

Regional & Bilateral Agreements

• Kuwait Convention (with countries bordering the Gulf) administered by the Regional Organisation for the Protection of the Marine Environment (ROPME), based in Kuwait.

Date of issue: March 2020