Oil and gas pipelines have been identified as an area of ongoing concern. Most potential problems lie in pipeline control and monitoring systems and a vulnerability to disruptions in the electricity supply. An example of this vulnerability was demonstrated in Iraq earlier this year. A missile destroyed a single repeater station used to pass flow and pressure information to the control centre on the Kirkuk - Ceyhan pipeline. The financial consequences of such closures are obvious.
Most refineries operate highly complex and integrated production systems.
As a result they face probably the highest risk of Y2K failure of any link in the oil supply chain. The ripple effect of refinery failures has the potential to affect regional oil product markets and eventually the crude oil market itself. Offshore oil production is generally at greater risk than onshore production because of the accessibility problems encountered when testing subsea equipment. Checking subsea equipment is both expensive and time consuming. Problems in safety systems are of particular concern as they may precipitate platform shutdowns.