View non-flash version
www.marinelink.com MN 29 Billiton (Americas), Inc.; Cobalt International Energy, LP; Deep Gulf Energy, LP; ENI U.S. Operating Co.; Energy Resource Technology GOM Inc.; Hess Corp.; LLOG Exploration Co, LLC; Marathon Oil Co.; Marubeni Oil & Gas USA Inc.; Murphy Oil Corp.; Newfield Exploration Co.; Nexen Petroleum USA Inc.; Noble Energy, Inc.; Repsol E&P USA Inc.; Statoil Gulf of Mexico LLC and Statoil USA E&P, Inc.; Stone Energy Corp.; Walter Oil & Gas Corp.; Woodside Energy (USA), Inc.; and W&T Offshore, Inc. Houston-based Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc. will provide the main components of HWCG's containment system, HWCG said in a statement. “Building upon Helix-owned equipment, effectively used in the Deepwater Horizon response, the system is currently capable of facilitating control and containment of spills in water depths up to 5,600 feet,” HWCG said in late March. And in the weeks ahead, “the system will substan- tially increase its containment capacity, expanding its capabilities to water depths up to 8,000 feet.” The Helix system should soon have capture-and-processing capabil- ities of 55,000 barrels of oil daily and 95 million cubic feet of gas daily, HWCG said. In late March, BOEMRE issued Statoil Gulf of Mexico a revised permit to drill a new well off the Texas coast using the HWCG capping stack. NEW SYSTEMS RAISE QUESTIONS At Louisiana State University, Dr. Su-Seng Pang, Jack Holmes Distinguished Professor of Mechanical Engineering, directed his comments to MWCC's capabil- ities and said he's pleased that the group formed to devel- op a containment system. “They've pulled together vari- ous, existing technologies and that's how they were able to come up with this system so quickly. They've devoted 100 employees to the new system and plan to spend $1 Trade Group Jim Adams, OMSA Until permitting accelerates “many of our best boats and Gulf rigs will leave under contract to other parts of the globe and won't return for years, if at all” Photo: Of fshor e Marine Ser vice Association (OMSA)
