Policy and Guidance applicable to Floating OCS Facilities (FOFs)

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The content listed below is available on this page. Use the tabs above to view the following categories:

  1) COMDTINST 16000.76, Marine Safety: OCS Inspections (previously MSM Volume II, Section G);

  2) Code of Federal Regulations (CFRs);

  3) National Policy;

  4) District Eight (Gulf of Mexico) Policy;

  5) Navigation and Vessel Inspection Circulars (NVICs);

  6) USCG Mission Management System (MMS) Work Instructions (WIs);

  7) Marine Safety Information Bulletins (MSIBs);

  8) Production Facility Applicability Flowchart; and

  9) Inspection job aid (replaced legacy checklists).

COMDTINST 16000.76, Marine Safety: OCS Inspections (previously Section G of the Marine Safety Manual, Volume II)

The following chapters of COMDTINST 16000.76, Marine Safety: Outer Continental Shelf Inspections are applicable to FOFs:

• Chapter 1, Regulations, Policy and Guidance for a Unit Conducting an OCS Activity, and
• Chapter 4, Procedures Applicable to Floating OCS Facilities.

This Commandant Instruction replaced Marine Safety Manual (MSM), Volume II: Section G - OCS Activities (cancelled 20Sep2021 and listed here for historical reference only). Note that there was no content change with the republishing of MSM Vol II Section G as a separate Commandant Instruction on 20Sep2021, but future content revisions are planned.

Code of Federal Regulations (CFRs)

CFRs that pertain to Floating OCS Facilities are as follows:

Primary subchapter -
  ○  33 CFR Subchapter N - Outer Continental Shelf Activities

Additional subchapters that apply -
​  ○  46 CFR Subchapter I-A - Mobile Offshore Drilling Units (Part 107, Subpart C and Part 108 only)
  ○  46 CFR Subchapter F - Marine Engineering
  ○  46 CFR Subchapter J - Electrical Engineering
  ○  46 CFR Subchapter Q - Equipment, Construction and Materials: Specifications and Approval
  ○  46 CFR Subchapter S - Subdivision and Stability
  ○  33 CFR Subchapter C - Aids to Navigation (Parts 66 and 67)
  ○  33 CFR Subchapter H - Maritime Security (Parts 101, 103 and 106; only applies to facilities that fall into the categories listed at §106.105(a))
  ○  33 CFR Subchapter O - Pollution (Parts 151, 153 and 155)

Note that 33 CFR Subchapter A also has applicability in regards to administration and legal actions.

CFRs can be viewed at ecfr.gov (regularly updated online version) or govinfo.gov (annual editions).

National Policy

National policy letters that apply to floating OCS facilities are listed in the table below, grouped by issuing authority and ordered from newest to oldest (by policy number/original issue date). Click on the policy number to open the document (opens in a new window).

February 2022 Policy Change: Please review CG-OES PL 01-22 and CG-MMS PL 01-22 in conjunction with 87 FR 7716 published on February 10, 2022 for a shift from the way that the CG has historically treated FOFs as "vessels". These policies discuss guidance on determining if a FOF is a vessel or non-vessel, oversight, certification/documents issued, manning requirements and changes related to merchant mariner credentials issued for service on FOFs. These policies came from a multi-year internal review of the USCG's regulations, policies and procedures related to oversight of FOFs on the U.S. OCS. The CG also reviewed recent court rulings related to OCS activities and the 2018 NOSAC report detailing the review and recommendations for CG regulations applicable to OCS units operating on the U.S. OCS (Production Subcommittee Final Report) while developing these policies.

District Eight (Gulf of Mexico) Policy

D8 policy letters that apply to floating OCS facilities are listed in the table below, grouped by issuing authority and ordered from newest to oldest (by policy number/original issue date). Click on the policy number to open the document (opens in a new window).

Note that policy letter numbers for all policies listed from 1999 and earlier do NOT have a policy number referenced on the letter itself, but the policy number listed was assigned by D8 for tracking purposes.

Navigation and Vessel Inspection Circulars (NVICs)

NVICs that apply to floating OCS facilities are listed in the table below, ordered from newest to oldest (by NVIC number). Click on the NVIC number to open the document (opens in a new window). ALL NVICs can be found on the Official NVIC Page.

MMS Work Instructions

Mission Management System (MMS) Work Instructions (WIs) that apply to floating OCS facilities are listed in the table below, grouped by issuing authority and ordered numerically by instruction number. All CVC MMS WIs can be viewed and accessed through the CG-CVC MMS page on their site. Click on the policy number to open the document (opens in a new window).

Marine Safety Information Bulletins (MSIBs)

MSIBs that apply to FOFs are listed in the table below, grouped by issuing authority and ordered from newest to oldest (by MSIB number/original issue date). Click on the MSIB number to open the document (opens in a new window).

Additional MSIBs issued by USCG Headquarters offices can be found here.

Production Facility Applicability Flowchart

For a pdf version of the applicability flowchart displayed below, click here.

Inspection Job Aid

The following Job Aid pertains to Floating OCS Facilities on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf. Job Aids replaced the legacy CG-840 Books and can be a valuable tool for owners and operators to maintain regulatory compliance on their facilities.

• Floating OCS Facility Job Aid: standard format or booklet.

Notes: 

Several items listed in the Job Aid may no longer be applicable to FOFs that have been determined NOT to be vessels in accordance with the provisions of CG-OES Policy Letter 01-22. Work has been completed to update the performance qualification standard (PQS) for USCG marine inspectors and the job aid, but the release of these revised documents has not been forecasted.

Job Aids are developed for use by the CG Marine Inspector, following internal CG procedures, and are provided as a convenience (and transparency) to industry. The Pre-Inspection/Pre-Exam and Follow-Up sections mainly pertain to administrative tasks of the Marine Inspector. While "if applicable" is NOT annotated within the Job Aid, there are inspection/exam items listed that may not apply to a particular facility.

Additional Job Aids and Marine Inspector Performance Qualification Standards (PQS) are available on CVC's MI Resources page.