Offshore Platform Operator Did Not Inspect Platforms As Required

The OIG investigated allegations that Prime 8, LLC, a company that conducted oil and gas operations and inspections in the Gulf of Mexico, violated departmental regulations and created records to support fictitious inspections of offshore platforms regulated by the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE). We found the company did not perform platform visits and inspections as required, and documents prepared by the company’s owner concealed that the mandatory platform visits had not occurred. Because of the inaccuracies in the company’s documents, BSEE inspectors could not have known that the company did not complete the required inspections. We referred our investigation to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas, which declined prosecution.