Abstract
The development phase of an offshore oil field involves a series of contracting activities which are no less complex than the projects themselves. Along the years, this has lead to an area of expertise for the legal community in the oil and gas industry worldwide.
This dissertation will present and analyze some of the oil and gas industry standard agreements used in United Kingdom, Norway and Brazil for construction of offshore installations.
Central to this dissertation will be the liabilities and indemnities regimes adopted in those standard agreements, particularly the allocation of risks for (i) loss and damages to property owned by each contracting parties, (ii) personal injuries, death or illness of personnel, (iii) indirect or consequential losses and (iv) third party claims arising out of personnel injuries, illness or death, or property loss or damages suffered by third parties. The knock-for-knock principle and mutual hold harmless scheme will be introduced as these are the central legal pieces of the contracts supporting offshore installations projects.