TITLE:
Contribution to the Development of a Simplified LCA Decision-Making Tool Applied to Metal Oil Platforms in Offshore Environments
AUTHORS:
Jesus Assaguina Bodiong, Aime Elime Bouboama, Deodonne Kunwufine, Giscard Desting Nimpa, Jacques Rémy Minane, Joyce Ursula Merveille Pettang Nana
KEYWORDS:
LCA, Simplified Method, Environmental Footprint, Offshore Oil Platform, Gulf of Guinea
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Civil Engineering,
Vol.16 No.3,
September
20,
2026
ABSTRACT: Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) is a standardised methodology to evaluate environmental impacts associated with a product or service throughout its life cycle. This study develops and validates a simplified LCA decision-making tool tailored for offshore metallic oil platforms (OMPs) in the Gulf of Guinea. The goal is to reduce the data collection burden typically associated with LCA, while maintaining a representative assessment of the environmental footprint. Simplified LCA models have gained increasing attention due to their ability to provide rapid assessments without compromising decision quality [1] [2]. The research involved defining the scope and system boundaries for a reference “PAPA” jacket-deck platform. Key impact categories were selected, including resource depletion, climate change, human toxicity, ecotoxicity, acidification, and eutrophication. A screening and evaluation of various LCIA methods (ReCiPe, CML, USEtox) were conducted. A qualitative sensitivity analysis was performed to prioritize key parameters, and the simplified model was implemented using SimaPro 9.2 (starter version) with Ecoinvent processes. The simplified model’s results were compared to a full LCA analysis of the PAPA platform. The analysis revealed that the use phase dominates the environmental impacts across most categories, including climate change, resource depletion, eutrophication, and ecotoxicity. The transport phase was identified as the second most significant contributor. The simplified model demonstrated an efficiency of 85.7% compared to the comprehensive LCA, confirming its potential for rapid environmental assessment. The simplified LCA tool offers a robust and time-efficient approach for environmental decision-making related to offshore platform projects in the Gulf of Guinea. This fills a regional research gap, as most LCAs are conducted in the North Sea or Gulf of Mexico [3]. However, limitations related to data availability for manufacturing and end-of-life stages, and the need for regionalized LCA methods, remain areas for future improvement.