Building confidence in subsea response capability
Exercises and assurance activities help organisations validate source control plans, test assumptions and assess preparedness arrangements before an incident occurs by stress-testing those arrangements in scenarios that reflect real-world conditions.
OSRL supports the design and delivery of exercises, preparedness reviews, performance evaluations and assurance activities that help organisations assess preparedness, identify opportunities for improvement and strengthen confidence in source control response arrangements. Independent observations and expert recommendations can help identify capability gaps and areas for further development.
Exercises can be scaled and tailored to meet different organisational objectives, asset types and operating environments. Activities may range from focused workshops and tabletop exercises through to full-scale drills, ROV simulation exercises and complex loss of well control scenarios involving multiple stakeholders and response functions.
By testing plans, people and processes in a controlled environment, exercises and assurance activities help organisations understand how their arrangements may perform during a source control incident.
Key facts
- Supports preparedness, readiness and response capability development.
- Activities can be scaled from facilitated workshops and tabletop exercises to full-scale simulations.
- Includes assurance activities designed to review and validate preparedness arrangements.
- Helps test plans, people and processes in realistic operational scenarios.
- Supports continual improvement through lessons identified and improvement recommendations.
- Can be tailored to asset-specific, regional or organisational requirements.
- Designed to strengthen confidence in source control response arrangements.
Exercises & assurance may include
- Full-scale exercises and drills with well blowout / loss of source control scenarios
- ROV simulation activities
- Tabletop exercises
- Workshops and facilitated discussions
- Validation of source control response plans
- Assurance assessments
- Organisational preparedness evaluations
- Readiness reviews
- Lessons identified and improvement recommendations
Flexible on-demand training to support effective subsea source control response
Our on-demand Source Control training courses provide a structured pathway to build understanding of subsea response operations and equipment, accessible at a time that suits your team. The Introduction to Fundamentals course covers core principles, system components, and deployment considerations in both shallow and deep-water scenarios.
Building on this foundation, the Intermediate Mission-Specific course focuses on the practical application of source control strategies in real-world contexts, supporting more informed decision-making during an incident. Together, these courses help strengthen capability and preparedness when working with subsea response systems and equipment.
FAQs
-
Exercises can be designed and scaled to meet different preparedness objectives, organisational requirements and levels of capability maturity.
Activities may include:
- Full-scale exercises and drills
- ROV simulation exercises
- Tabletop exercises
- Workshops and facilitated discussions
- Facilitated scenarios
- Validation activities
-
Assurance activities help organisations review preparedness arrangements, assess readiness and identify areas for improvement. These activities can support ongoing preparedness programmes and help validate response arrangements.
For example, an assurance activity may review whether a Source Control Emergency Response Plan (SCERP), logistics arrangements and response capabilities remain aligned with current operational requirements.
-
Yes. Exercises can be aligned with existing emergency response plans, Incident Management Systems (IMS), crisis management arrangements and other preparedness activities.
-
Yes. Exercises can be tailored to reflect asset-specific risks, operating environments and regional response considerations.
OSRL's global network of locations, response resources and specialist expertise can help ensure exercises reflect regional operational and mobilisation considerations where appropriate.
-
Exercises and assurance activities are often scheduled as part of a preparedness programme and may also be undertaken following significant operational changes, updates to response arrangements or lessons identified from previous activities.
Typical triggers may include:
- Changes to assets, operations or operating environments
- Updates to response plans or capabilities
- Introduction of new equipment, systems or procedures
- Lessons identified through exercises, incidents or assurance reviews
- Regulatory or stakeholder requirements
Build confidence across the source control lifecycle.
Ready to strengthen preparedness and readiness?
Effective preparedness relies on more than individual plans, studies or exercises. Our preparedness services help connect engineering, planning, logistics and assurance activities to support informed decision-making before an incident occurs.
Whether you're developing new arrangements or reviewing existing capability, we can help strengthen confidence across your source control preparedness programme.
Simply fill in the form, and we'll get in contact with you.
If you would prefer to call us, pick up the phone to speak with our Preparedness Solutions Advisors and Country Representatives. We look forward to talking with you!
+44 (0)23 8033 1551
Regional numbers:
Asia Pacific
+65 6266 1566
Americas
+1 954 983 9880