Netherlands Assessment of Discharges, Spills and Emissions from Offshore Oil and Gas Installations
2018 - 2023

Executive Summary

This report presents the discharge, spill and emission data for The Netherlands offshore oil and gas operations during the period 2018 – 2023 and provides an assessment of that data. The annual data on which the assessment is based are provided in Annex 2.

Level of Activity

The Netherlands Continental Shelf (NLCS) is a mature oil and gas province within the OSPAR Maritime Area which saw approximately a 44% reduction in production between 2018 and 2023. The number of installations with discharges or emissions on the NLCS has decreased from 100 in 2018 to 83 in 2023; drilling activity decreased from 13 wells drilled in 2018 to only 4 wells drilled in 2023.

Discharges & Spills of Oil

The total quantity of dispersed oil discharged with produced and displacement water on the NLCS decreased by 16%. Dispersed oil discharges for the OSPAR Maritime Area decreased by 21% from 2018 to 2023. In 2023, the dispersed oil discharged by The Netherlands’ industry contributed approximately 1,5% to the total volume discharged in the whole OSPAR Maritime Area.

The number of oil spills to sea during the period 2018 - 2023 has varied, with a low of 3 spills in 2020 and 2022 and a high of 11 spills in 2021. The quantity spilled varied from an annual total of 0,01 tonnes to 0,9 tonnes. No oil spills over 1 tonnes occurred.

The majority of installations on the NLCS meet the OSPAR oil-in-water performance standard of maximum 30mg/l. From 2018 to 2023, only in 2020 did one installation fail to meet the performance standard, discharging 0,78 tonnes of dispersed oil during the period where the performance standard was exceeded.  

Chemicals

The use of chemicals decreased by 39% over the assessment period, where discharge of chemicals was reduced by 66%. In 2023, 90,1% (by weight) of the chemicals discharged were on the PLONOR list, 9,0% (by weight) of those discharged were Ranking chemicals and 0,9% (by weight) of the chemicals discharged were candidates for substitution. No chemicals with substances from OSPAR’s List of Chemicals for Priority Action (LCPA) were discharged.

Atmospheric Emissions

Atmospheric emissions from offshore oil and gas activities are not regulated by OSPAR measures, but are reported annually by operators. Atmospheric emissions decreased over the reporting period, with a 25% reduction for CO₂, 34% reduction for SO₂, 55% reduction for CH₄, 57% reduction for NO_x and a 41% reduction for nmVOCs.