Analysis of Security Threats for Offshore Oil&Gas Installations

Offshore oil & gas operations are a key part of the supply of energy in many countries. Worldwide, about a third of the oil is produced offshore and, in Europe, more than 80% of the current oil and gas production takes place offshore. In spite of their location, which makes them inherently more difficult to reach, offshore oil and gas installations are susceptible to security-threatening external agents. The attractiveness is linked to the high amount of hazardous substances handled, the socio-political location of the target installations, and the possibility of obtaining proprietary information important for the business. Besides the direct outcomes of an attack in terms of casualties and loss of production, the potential for the release of large quantities of hazardous materials as a result of an intentional attack, defines scenarios of damage to people, environment and assets comparable to the outcomes of major accidents originating from safety-related causes. In the present study, in order to gain insights on the issue, a database of 2222 security-related events was developed and analysed. Itemized categories used to classify the events by industrial sector, security threats, attack modes, and final scenarios triggered by the intentional attacks, were defined and correlations among them were investigated using descriptive statistics and Multi Correspondence Analysis (MCA). A subset of 99 events strictly related to offshore oil & gas production operations was further analysed, allowing the development of fishbone diagrams showing attack patterns performed by the attackers, as well as bow-tie diagrams displaying the role of security barriers and the physical scenarios triggered by such attacks. Overall, the results point out the concreteness of security-related events in the offshore oil & gas industry and provide baseline information useful for the application of techniques addressing the management of security risks in industrial installations.