Using a translation website for those of us not of Dutch descent.
Subject: SAR helicopter dust EXTREMELY URGENT
Dear Ms. Schultz van Haegen,
Please, we ask again your urgent attention to adequate Search and Rescue (SAR)
facilities to guarantee by the Government after 1 January 2014 and thereby the safety of
people in the North Sea, including many offshore workers, unnecessarily.
Needless to say I report that it should comply with the national and international
agreed standard that a SAR helicopter 90 minutes after alerting within the entire
area of responsibility of the Coast Guard must be able to present at least 16 persons
to lift out of the water and then off to put on a safe location (source: note "Maritime
Emergency aid ", maritime and aeronautic emergency aid on the North Sea 2010-2015, Ministry of transport
and Water Management dated december 2010).
From the middle of last year we have been talking to your Ministry on this issue. In our letter of
26 June 2013, we have formally reported that the NOGEPA SAR contract with Bristow at 31 december
2013 will expire and no more (again) again may be extended because of the State in which
the old S61 helicopters after ten years. I log on to this that this contract now
Indeed, in the formal sense has been cancelled.
Over the past decade, all costs for the implementation of this voluntary NOGEPA
Government undertaken (order of size 100 million euro). NOGEPA has offered this
costs are not (partly) on the Government there to stories as long as they themselves will also from 1 January
2014, when our contract will be terminated, proper SAR service is available.
To this end, we have, in collaboration with Mr Van Duyvendijk (President KNRM), peat (Director
Coast Guard), Bauer (Schout at night Defense), constructive discussions with Mr. Jacobs of your
Ministry to come to a rounded business case for the hiring of two medium size SAR
helicopters by the Government from 1 January 2014.
This business case was completed to everyone's satisfaction for more than half a year ago, therefore on a
such time that the Government could start the competitive bidding process in a timely manner. However, to date,
your Ministry working to reach agreement on the internal distribution of costs (estimated at
about 8 million per year) and the process, in our view, serious and unnecessary delay,
Despite multiple direct consultation with stakeholders mentioned ministers repeatedly camp,
Opstelten, Hennis-Plasschaert and yourself.
The possible and very undesirable consequence might be that after January 1, 2014 no adequate SAR
supply cannot be guaranteed by the Government, whereby also the security of our colleagues
offshore is no longer guaranteed. As a result, we would be forced, partly under pressure from the
Inspector General of SodM (State supervision of mines), to our gas production at sea
discontinued.
Obviously, this will have very serious consequences both in terms of the
security of supply, financial as well as employment. That is why we are asking you
as responsible Minister personally to intervene directly and take action to achieve
supply adequate SAR per 1 January 2014.
We have done a number of specific proposals as NOGEPA to Mr J. This includes
the contact we have established between Mr. Jacobs and Bristow, by the implementation of a
Bristow suggested integrated UK/NL SAR solution, which are still per 1 January next year would
can be entered, as possible. This solution is up for grabs, but requires
immediate action.
In our view, we have done everything to your Ministry to enable this problem on a
constructive way to resolve in a timely manner and to everyone's satisfaction. We want to hear from you how you
an adequate SAR service by 1 January 2014 so that we guarantee this goes by november 2013
to our members and their colleagues offshore, their works councils, their shareholders and our
supervisor State supervision of mines can communicate.