INEOS continues to make steady progress towards the safe repair of the Forties Pipeline. A continued assessment has confirmed that the hairline crack has stabilised. The crack has not propagated since flow of oil and gas was stopped through the pipe on Monday 11th December.
Repairs are progressing well and a number of options are currently being developed. The custom parts necessary for some of these options have now been fabricated and are being delivered to the site over the coming days as we progress the preferred method of repair from today.
At this stage it is still too early to say exactly how long the repair will take to complete, and there is no change to the previously indicated timescale of two to four weeks from 11th Dec. We will work to complete this as quickly as possible but safety is our highest priority.
The precautionary safety cordon remains at 150m. The restricted access to the road to the site (the unclassified CK12 Netherley to Cookney road) remains closed by the police and all non-essential drivers are being requested to seek alternative routes to ensure that the road remains clear for essential works.
We apologise to our customers and the local community for the issues that this creates and we are working hard to minimise the impact of the pipeline closure as far as possible.
ENDS.
INEOS press office: 0131 557 5252
Richard Longden (INEOS) 0041 21 627 7063 or 0041 7996 26123
Mark Killick (Media Zoo) 020 7384 6980 or 07836 63444
Joseph Moss (Media Zoo) 020 7384 6980 or 07769 215374
Andrew McLachlan (Media Zoo) 020 7384 6980 or 07931 377162