The Legal Regime of Offshore Oil Rigs in International Law

This book reviews and examines the relevant portions of all international treaties, cases and the national law and practice of states, in relation to international aspects of offshore oil rigs. By doing so, it offers an understanding of the legal regime surrounding oil rigs and formulates an international law framework. It investigates the issues under consideration by analyzing provisions of international law pertaining to all aspects of oil rigs, as well as international treaties and their travaux preparatoires. It also examines the national legislation of major offshore oil and gas producers and defines a framework of customary international entities such as the OSPAR and the petroleum industries of certain major offshore oil producers. Based upon the book's findings, it is clear that in spite of their increasing importance, offshore oil installations are subject to fragmentary and vague legal rules under international law. The subject of this book is an investigation of the international legal issues relating to the establishment, the operation and the decommissioning of offshore oil rigs in different parts of the sea. It examines the legal status of offshore oil rigs, the issue of jurisdiction in relation to, or on board, oil rigs and the protection of such installations under international law. It also examines environmental issues, including the decommissioning of oil platforms, and the conflict between the establishment and the use of offshore oil rigs and other uses of the sea. The investigation proceeds by examining the relevant sections of all international conventions which have provisions relating to offshore oil production and international and national cases. It also investigates national legislation and the practice of states in relation to international legal aspects of offshore oil installations in order to gain an understanding of the legal regime for these installations and to formulate and suggest an international law framework based on that understanding. Generally, the significance of the findings of this book is that, under international law, offshore oil installations, in spite of their increasing importance, are subject to fragmentary and vague legal rules This book reviews and examines the relevant portions of all international treaties, cases and the national law and practice of states, in relation to international aspects of offshore oil rigs. By doing so, it offers an understanding of the legal regime surrounding oil rigs and formulates an internationallaw framework. It investigates the issues under consideration by analyzing provisions of international law pertaining to all aspects of oil rigs, as well as international treaties and their travaux preparatoires. It also examines the national legislation of major offshore oil and gas producers and defines a framework of customary international entities such as the OSPAR and the petroleum industries of certain major offshore oil producers. Based upon the book's findings, it is clear that in spite of their increasing importance, offshore oil installations are subject to fragmentary and vague legal rules under international law.

Author Biography: Hossein Esmaeili, Dr, School of Law, The University of New England, Australia.

Contents Preface Foreword Abbreviations 1 Introduction 2 Types and Physical Nature of Offshore Oil Rigs 3 The Legal Status of Offshore Oil Rigs 4 Jurisdiction of States in Relation to Oil Rigs 5 Protection of Offshore Oil Rigs 6 Environmental Issues Relating to Offshore Oil Rigs 7 The Decommissioning of Offshore Oil Rigs 8 The Conflict Between the Use of Oil Rigs, Navigation and Other Uses of the Sea 9 Conclusions Bibliography Table of Treaties Table of Cases Table of Statutes Inde The book is intended to review and examine the relevant portions of all international treaties, cases and the national law and practice of States in relation to international aspects of offshore oil rigs, in order to gain an understanding of the legal regime surrounding oil rigs and to formulate an international law framework based on that understanding.