Key Milestones of the Corrib gas project

September

• Completion of the offshore development programme
  The 2009 offshore development programme came to an end with the Solitaire pipelay vessel having successfully welded and laid the Corrib gas pipeline from the landfall at Glengad to the Corrib field, 83 kilometres offshore.

February

• SEPIL submit applications for new onshore pipeline route to relevant statutory bodies. 
  Applications for this new route were submitted to the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources under the Gas Act, to An Bord Pleanála under the Strategic Infrastructure Act, and to the Department of Agriculture Fisheries and Food under the Foreshore Act.

Sedco 711 drilling rig

December

• Sedco 711 departs the Corrib field having completed work on the Corrib wells.
  Four wells at the Corrib field are now completed and are ready for production at a later date. Work on the wells was carried out during the 2006, 2007 and 2008 drilling seasons.

April

• RPS identifies modified pipeline route.
  The modified onshore pipeline route was identified in April 2008 following a 14-month route selection process. The new route strikes the best balance between the community, environmental and technical criteria.  The modified route doubles the distance from occupied housing and the pipeline's design pressure is less than half of the original design pressure.

November

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) grants an Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC) licence for the gas terminal.
Integrated Pollution Prevention and Control (IPPC) Licences are required for all industrial installations such as the Corrib gas terminal to ensure that they are properly designed and operated with due regard for the environment.  An IPPC licence controls emissions to air, water and land. SEPIL's IPPC licence application was subject to a thorough and transparent process including a 12-day oral hearing during which members of the local community, including opponents to the project, participated fully and had an opportunity to raise their concerns. In granting the licence, the EPA, which is the competent authority with respect to IPPC licencing in Ireland, confirmed that emissions from the gas terminal "will not adversely affect human health or the environment and will meet all relevant national and EU standards, when operated in accordance with the conditions of the proposed licence".

January

• RPS consultants appointed to identify a modified pipeline route.
  Having committed to modify the route of the onshore section of pipeline following independent mediator, Peter Cassells' recommendation, SEPIL appointed engineering consultants, RPS, to identify a modified route in consultation with the local community.
  
  The new route was identified in April 2008 following a 14-route selection process involving 11 months of public consultation. Applications associated with this route modifications were lodged with the relevant statutory bodies in February 2009.

Peat haulage

October

• Work resumes at the terminal site in Bellanaboy Bridge.
  SEPIL staff and approximately 70 local contractors return to work at Bellanaboy Terminal. Work at the terminal site had been suspended since August 2005 to allow Advantica to complete its Independent Safety Review and for the Cassells' mediation process to be conducted.

July

• Independent Mediator Mr Peter Cassells' report is published.
  SEPIL welcomed the mediator's report which found that a clear majority of people in Rossport, the wider Erris area and Co. Mayo are in favour of the project. Throughout the mediation process, SEPIL consistently offered to discuss and address the safety issues raised by the main objectors. Following a recommendation from the mediator, SEPIL agreed to modify the route of the onshore section of the Corrib gas pipeline to address community concerns regarding its proximity to housing.

May

• Final report of Advantica Independent Safety Review published.
  In their report, Advantica concluded, “proper consideration was given to safety issues in the selection process for the preferred design option and the locations of the landfall, pipeline and terminal”.  SEPIL accepts all of the Advantica recommendations and agreed to limit pressure in the onshore section of the pipeline to 144bar or below.

September

• Mr Peter Cassells appointed as mediator.
  Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources announces mediation process to address concerns regarding safety of the pipeline.

August

• SEPIL announces temporary suspension of work.
  SEPIL announced its decision to temporarily suspend work on the pipeline to allow for a period of public discussion and dialogue. This suspension was to enable the Company to address remaining public concerns.

• Government appoints Advantica to carry out an independent safety review of the Corrib pipeline.
  In response to safety concerns expressed by members of the local community, the Irish Government appointed international consultants, Advantica, to conduct an independent safety review of the onshore pipeline.

May

• Following the granting of a court injunction, five local residents were held in contempt of court for refusing to allow SEPIL entry onto their land to construct the onshore pipeline, and they were committed to jail.

October

• An Bord Pleanála grant planning permission for Bellanaboy terminal.
  A planning application for the gas terminal was made to Mayo County Council (MCC) in April 2001, and subsequently appealed to An Bord Pleanála (ABP - the Irish planning appeals board).  ABP refused planning permission on the issue of peat storage. In December 2003, a new planning application was made for the same site, together with a peat deposition site owned and operated by Bord na Móna at Srahmore, some 11 km away.  This was subject to an appeal to An Bord Pleanála who granted permission in October 2004 attaching 42 conditions.

May

• Foreshore licence granted to the Corrib gas partners.
  A Foreshore license for the pipeline, umbilical and outfall pipe was granted in May 2002.

• Shell E&P Ireland Limited (SEPIL) acquire Enterprise Energy Ireland Ltd.

April

• The Plan for Development for the Corrib gas field was granted in April 2002.
  This overarching consent was granted in April 2002 by the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources (now DCENR).

• The Continental Shelf Act authorisation was granted in April 2002.

• Consent to construct the Corrib gas pipeline (approx 83 kilometres offshore and 9 km onshore) granted under Section 40 of the Gas Act.
  An application for Consent to Construct a Pipeline under the Gas Act 1976, was submitted to the DMNR in November 2001.  The submission was accompanied by an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).

November

• Petroleum Lease granted by the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources.
  A Petroleum Lease was granted under the Petroleum and Other Minerals Development Act, 1960 by the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources.  This lease required the submission of a Plan of Development for the Corrib gas field by Enterprise Energy Ireland Ltd.

• First appraisal well drilled.
  In 1998, the first appraisal well was drilled to determine the extent of the find. Having established that the field was commercially viable, a start was made on the lengthy planning and statutory approval processes.

• Corrib Field discovered.
  In 1993 an exploration licence was granted to Enterprise Oil for an area off the northwest coast of Ireland. In 1996, what we know today as the Corrib Natural gas field was discovered. Enterprise Energy Ireland was subsequently acquired by Shell E&P Ireland Limited (Sepil) in 2002.