Introduction to the NEBOSH Online Oil and Gas Course

In 2010 the Deepwater Horizon oil spill occurred in the Gulf of Mexico, affecting 68,000 square miles of ocean. The main factors that are attributed to this disaster were:

• The use of inferior cement
• The failure of valves that were to stop oil from flowing to the surface
• A misinterpreted pressure test
• A faulty alarm that was meant to warn of gas leakages
• Systems that were meant to automatically shut down in case of a gas blowout had faulty switches and flat batteries.

These are all factors that could have been avoided, had the correct health and safety measures been in place and maintained. The spill resulted in 11 lost lives, catastrophic environmental damage and $42.2 billion in civil and criminal settlements.

The oil and gas industry is considered to be one of the more hazardous fields to work in and, therefore, health and safety measures need to be followed to the letter as they are very closely scrutinised. Undertaking a gas and oil career can be extremely lucrative and, due to the hazards and risks involved, oil and gas safety professionals are highly regarded.

The NEBOSH (National Examination Board in Occupational Safety and Health) online Oil and Gas course is aimed at those that are responsible for the health and safety aspects in the workplace relating to the industry of oil and gas. It targets those that have experience in the oil and gas field and, therefore, is more technically challenging than other NEBOSH courses of the same calibre.

Upon completion of the NEBOSH online Oil and Gas course, you will have gained the skills and knowledge necessary to design and implement effective health and safety measures relating to the gas and oil industry. Many of the health and safety aspects covered in the course are unique to the industry since some of the hazards and measures that need to be implemented differ from other sectors. The most common incidents are linked to transportation, followed by contact with equipment or objects, fires, explosions, exposure to harmful substances or environments and falls.

NEBOSH Oil and Gas Course focus

The NEBOSH online Oil and Gas course has a strong focus on the following areas:

• Learn from incidents – using the lessons learned from previous health and safety incidents to better implement preventative measures.
• Hazards characteristic to oil and gas – many of the hazards that exist in the oil and gas industry are unique, and need to be catered for.
• Risk management techniques used in the oil and gas industries.
• Safety cases and safety reports – creating cases for investigation and reports on incidents.
• Process Management – analysing the prevention of the release of hazardous chemicals.
• Failure modes – anticipating failure of health and safety precautions.
• How to safely store hydrocarbons.
• Operations involving furnaces and boilers.
• Explosion and fire risks relating to the oil and gas industry.
• Emergency response procedures.
• Marine and land transport.

Internationally recognised NEBOSH certificate

The certification that you will gain upon completion of the NEBOSH online Oil and Gas Course is recognised around the globe as the benchmark to which health and safety standards are measured in the oil and gas field.

This will mean that, even if you do relocate to another country, you will still be able to continue practising as a NEBOSH International certified health and safety professional without the need to revise your certification. The legislation that is covered in this course is also applicable internationally and covers oil and gas safety for both onshore and offshore operations.

The recommended study time before taking on the exam for the NEBOSH online Oil and Gas Course is about 55 hours.

Oil and Gas Course Subject matter

The NEBOSH Oil & Gas Safety course consists of one course unit which is divided into five sections. The key topics that are covered during the course include the following:

1. Health, safety and environmental management in context
2. Hydrocarbon process safety 1
3. Hydrocarbon process safety 2
4. Fire protection and emergency response
5. Logistics and transport operations

Although it is recommended that students first attain the NEBOSH National General Certificate or NEBOSH International General Certificate or equivalent and have knowledge of the production and process operations of hydrocarbon, there are no official prerequisites to undertaking this course via Nebosh distance learning.

The NEBOSH Oil and Gas Exam format

The NEBOSH online Oil and Gas exam consists of one core unit (IOG1) which will allow you two hours (120 minutes) to answer as many of the questions as possible. You will be required to answer one long answer question and ten short answer questions.

In order to gain your certification, you will need to answer a minimum of 45 questions correctly out of a possible 100 (45%). Once you have completed the exam, your paper will be marked by an approved NEBOSH examiner who will provide feedback on your paper and provide you with your final mark.

The exams for the NEBOSH online Oil and Gas Course are available annually during the months of March, June, September and December.

Certification progression for Health and Safety

It is suggested that, after studying the NEBOSH online Oil and Gas Course, students consider undertaking the NEBOSH International Diploma as this will give them an even broader scope of skills knowledge in their health and safety careers, focussing on best practices when assessing, creating, implementing and managing health and safety systems in the workplace.

Career options for NEBOSH Oil and Gas students

Upon completion of the NEBOSH online Oil and Gas Course, you will be qualified to apply for positions such as:

• Safety Compliance Advisor
• Health and Safety Manager
• Shift Operations Technician
• Construction Manager
• Facilities Manager
• Electrical Contracts Manager
• Health and Safety Consultant
• Rig Engineer
• Health and Safety Site Lead
• Senior Site Safety Engineer

Undertaking studies towards a specific area of health and safety will ensure that you remain an in demand professional and can have a massive positive impact on your health and safety career. The NEBOSH online Oil and Gas course will also add to your wealth of skills and knowledge if you are already employed in or already have a different certification in the health and safety sector.

Get in touch with our expert to discuss the NEBOSH Oil and gas course.