Oil spill contingency plans will typically use oil spill trajectory and fate modelling to determine areas vulnerable to pollution. Similar services are required in Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) and oil spill financial liability studies. Oil spill model results are a useful scenario-setter for full-scale oil spill response exercises and, of course, oil spill models are an important on-site tool during real incidents. As oil exploration moves into deeper waters, sub-sea oil spills from pipeline leaks and blowouts require new phenomena to be considered.

BMT Cordah Ltd has over 10 years’ experience in the development and running of oil spill models. The award-winning OSIS model, developed jointly with AEA Technology plc, has been developed on a foundation of over 30 years of oil spill research and is backed up by validation studies including over 50 field trials. The sub-sea oil release module, SSOR, was developed by BMT Cordah and AEA to meet the requirement for sub-surface oil spill modelling, particularly as offshore exploration moves into deeper waters. BMT Cordah’s oil spill modelling customers have included most of the major offshore operators, national governments, port authorities and environmental consultancies in areas including the UK, Europe, Caspian Sea, Arabian Gulf and SE Asia.