The operator of Maari field, OMV New Zealand Limited (OMV) has reported that production had restarted on Saturday at the Maari facility, following the confirmation that the sheen seen on November 20, was due to a small amount of residual oil trapped beneath the FPSO Raroa's hull.

Production was shut down as a precaution and a thorough review was undertaken which included divers examining parts of the vessel's hull. OMV consulted with Maritime New Zealand and divers have now cleaned the affected area and production restarted.

The residual oil came from the October 18, incident when oil was noticed on the water near the Raroa during de-ballasting operations. Measures have been implemented to ensure this type of accidental discharge will not happen again.

Participants in the Maari field are:

•Cue Taranaki Pty Ltd 5% •OMV NZ Ltd (Operator) 69% •Todd Maari Limited 16% •Horizon Oil International Limited 10%

Tags: OMV