Oil & Gas Project Decision Log
This is a practical guide to building a decision log for an oil & gas project project — a record of the key decisions made, by whom and why, adapted to the realities of delivering an oil and gas facility or field development.
What a Decision Log is
A decision log is a record of the key decisions made, by whom and why. For the full concept and how it works in general, see Decision Log. On an oil & gas project project it plays the same role, tuned to this kind of work.
Why it matters for an Oil & Gas Project project
Oil & Gas Project projects live or die on delivering an oil and gas facility or field development. A well-built decision log gives the team a shared, explicit reference for exactly that — reducing ambiguity, aligning stakeholders, and making problems visible early enough to act. Skipping it, or doing it generically, is how oil & gas project projects drift into avoidable delay and cost.
What to include
- Decision
- Date and owner
- Rationale
- Alternatives considered
- Impact
Oil & Gas Project-specific considerations
Tailor the decision log to the risks that most often derail oil & gas project projects:
- HSE and regulatory risk
- Remote logistics
- Commodity price exposure
Example
On a real oil & gas project project, the decision log would be shaped by delivering an oil and gas facility or field development. In particular, it should explicitly account for the project’s biggest risks — HSE and regulatory risk, remote logistics, commodity price exposure — rather than treating them as afterthoughts.