Further consultation for the decommissioning of certain facilities within the Kinsale Head and Seven Heads Petroleum Lease areas

​The Minister has received an application from PSE Kinsale Energy for the decommissioning of certain facilities of the Kinsale Head / Ballycotton gas fields and an application from PSE Seven Heads Limited for the decommissioning of certain facilities of the Seven Heads gas field. Production from the Kinsale Head gas field commenced in 1978, with Ballycotton and Seven Heads coming into production later. The fields are now coming to the end of their productive life. The facilities are located in the Celtic Sea, between approximately 40 and 70km off the County Cork coast and onshore at Inch, County Cork.

These applications cover the following activities:

• plugging and abandoning of development wells
• the removal of two platform topsides structures
• the removal of a number of subsea facilities

These applications are the first of two. A further application will be made which will encompass all remaining structures in the gas fields. Details of the facilities and proposed work schedule are contained in the decommissioning plans for the gas fields below. Consent has been sought for approval of an addendum to the Plan of Development for both gas fields, in accordance with Section 13 and 13A of the Petroleum and Other Minerals Development Act 1960, as amended and also to alter and remove certain facilities from a designated area under Section 5(2) of the Continental Shelf Act 1968, as amended. The applications are accompanied by Environmental Impact Assessment Report and an Appropriate Assessment Screening Report. These reports cover the environmental impacts of the entire decommissioning of the facilities.

Submissions for this consultation process closed on 17 December 2018.

The Minister of State at the Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment has made determinations on the applications from PSE Kinsale Energy (KEL) for the decommissioning of certain facilities of the Kinsale Head and Ballycotton gas fields,) and from PSE Seven Heads Limited (SHL) for the decommissioning of certain facilities of the Seven Heads gas field, which were received on 28 June 2018.

Consent was sought for approval of an addendum to the Plan of Development for both gas fields, in accordance with Section 13 and 13A of the Petroleum and Other Minerals Development Act 1960, as amended (POMDA) and also to alter and remove certain facilities from a designated area under Section 5(2) of the Continental Shelf Act 1968, as amended. The applications were accompanied by Environmental Impact Assessment Report and an Appropriate Assessment Screening Report. These reports cover the environmental impacts of the entire decommissioning of the facilities. Further applications will be made which will encompass all remaining structures in the gas fields.

Please note that the validity of the decisions may be questioned by judicial review under Order 84 of the Rules of the Superior Courts (S.I. No.15 of 1986), as amended. Any application for leave to apply for judicial review must be made promptly and in any event within three months from the date of this decision. Practical information on the review mechanism can be obtained from Citizens Information at your local Citizens Information Centre, by phone on 0761 07 4000 or online at citizensinformation.ie.

Full details on the decision on Kinsale Gas Field Application and the decision on Seven Heads Gas Field Application can be found here.