Title 30

SECTION 250.739

250.739 What are the BOP maintenance and inspection requirements

§ 250.739 What are the BOP maintenance and inspection requirements?

(a) You must maintain and inspect your BOP system to ensure that the equipment functions as designed. The BOP maintenance and inspections must meet or exceed any OEM recommendations, recognized engineering practices, and industry standards incorporated by reference into the regulations of this subpart, including API Standard 53 (incorporated by reference in § 250.198). You must document how you met or exceeded the provisions of API Standard 53, maintain complete records to ensure the traceability of BOP stack equipment beginning at fabrication, and record the results of your BOP inspections and maintenance actions. You must make all records available to BSEE upon request.

(b) A major, detailed inspection of the well control system components (including but not limited to riser, BOP, LMRP, and control pods) must be performed every 5 years. This major inspection may be performed in phased intervals. You must track and document all system and component inspection dates. These records must be available on the rig. An independent third party is required to review the inspection results and must compile a detailed report of the inspection results, including descriptions of any problems and how they were corrected. You must make these reports available to BSEE upon request. This major inspection must be performed every 5 years from the following applicable dates, whichever is later:

(1) The date the equipment owner accepts delivery of a new build drilling rig with a new BOP system;

(2) The date the new, repaired, or remanufactured equipment is initially installed into the system; or

(3) The date of the last 5 year inspection for the component.

(c) You must visually inspect your surface BOP system on a daily basis. You must visually inspect your subsea BOP system, marine riser, and wellhead at least once every 3 days if weather and sea conditions permit. You may use cameras to inspect subsea equipment.

(d) You must ensure that all personnel maintaining, inspecting, or repairing BOPs, or critical components of the BOP system, are trained in accordance with applicable training requirements in subpart S of this part, any applicable OEM criteria, recognized engineering practices, and industry standards incorporated by reference in this subpart.

(e) You must make all records available to BSEE upon request. You must ensure that the rig unit owner maintains the BOP maintenance, inspection, and repair records on the rig unit for 2 years from the date the records are created or for a longer period if directed by BSEE. You must ensure that all equipment schematics, maintenance, inspection, and repair records are located at an onshore location for the service life of the equipment.

[81 FR 26022, Apr. 29, 2016, as amended at 84 FR 21983, May 15, 2019]

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