" Five people dead and one missing after Perenco fire" 21 March 2024

A fire has broken out on a Perenco oil platform off the coast of Gabon, leaving five people dead and another missing. The incident took place at around 3.25pm on Wednesday local time at the Simba field, during a workover a workover operation on the Becuna rig operated by Perenco Oil & Gas Gabon. Perenco said: “We deeply regret to confirm that there have been five fatalities and one person is still missing. “Our thoughts are with the bereaved families and we are focused on supporting them at this time. “Emergency teams continue to be deployed on site and to search for the missing person.” It had been previously reported that following the accident that took place during an intervention inside the well, seven of the 12 people onboard were successfully evacuated. However, now the number of fatalities has gone from four to five. Of those saved from the rig, one crew member suffered a leg injury that caused them to be hospitalised and another was transported to Gabon’s capital of Libreville after suffering a “severe burn.”

The social media update from the Republic of Gabon’s Ministry of Oil and Gas shared the Minister of Petroleum, Marcel ABÉKÉ’s condolences for those who lost their lives and the families of the victims. The government department is said to be working with Perenco to investigate the incident and support the families affected. The Ministry of Oil and Gas said that it will share “the circumstances that led to this accident, and the lessons that must be learned from it” at a later date. The operator added: “Perenco has activated its emergency response procedure and is working closely with the emergency services and the relevant authorities. Further information will be made available as soon as possible.”Last year Tullow transferred part of its existing percentage of the Simba assets to Perenco.