Sustainable offshore oil and gas decommissioning: frameworks, challenges, and innovations

The decommissioning of oil and gas infrastructure is a highly intricate process that necessitates meticulous planning, adherence to regulatory frameworks, and specialized engineering expertise. Engineers and project managers engaged in decommissioning operations often encounter difficulties in accessing comprehensive documentation that consolidates information on various structural types, methodologies, inventories, components, equipment, logistical requirements, environmental impacts, remediation strategies, and decision-making tools essential for ensuring safe and effective decommissioning. This review presents a structured framework to aid engineers in understanding the fundamental aspects of decommissioning, encompassing infrastructure classifications, structural components, removal techniques, equipment selection, cost considerations, environmental implications, remediation strategies, and key decision-making criteria. The study categorizes oil and gas infrastructure with a specific focus on offshore platforms, detailing their structural components and operational functions. Furthermore, the present study introduces a structured framework to support decommissioning decisions that integrate sustainability, feasibility, and operational efficiency. By comparing different decommissioning scenarios, this study underscores the balance between sustainability, economic feasibility, and operational constraints. The review concludes by discussing future challenges associated with oil and gas infrastructure decommissioning. This structured approach equips engineers with the essential knowledge to assess strategies, anticipate impacts, and make well-informed decommissioning decisions while ensuring both environmental sustainability and economic viability.