Environmental Protection Authority v BW Offshore Singapore Pte Ltd

The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) applied to the High Court for a stay of a decision of the Environment Court that had stayed the operation of abatement notices that the EPA had issued to BW Offshore Singapore Pte Ltd (BWO). The abatement notices required BWO to stop disconnecting a floating oil production vessel from undersea pipes. The EPA’s stay application was granted, and BWO’s appeal against the Environment Court’s decision was dismissed. The High Court held that the Environment Court erred in concluding that the changed circumstances since the EPA’s 2017 ruling did not allow the EPA to exercise its powers under the Exclusive Economic Zone and Continental Shelf (Environmental Effects) Act 2012 (the Act) notwithstanding the 2017 ruling. The Court also held that the Environment Court erred in concluding that there were limits on what BWO was required to do in relation to the decommissioning of the oil field. The High Court considered that the changed circumstances, including the insolvency of the other party to the joint venture, meant that a complete re-assessment of the situation was required, and the abatement notice was the appropriate mechanism by which the EPA preserved the situation until a new and complete assessment of the current circumstances could occur. However, the Court also held that the EPA’s stay application should not be granted because the disconnection of the FPSO was essentially neutral when it came to the issues that would arise from decommissioning the remainder of the oil mining activities on the sea floor, and it would be preferable for the Environment Court to reassess the matter on appeal.