A federal drilling moratorium was proposed because of the oil spill within the Gulf of Mexico 2010. The oil industry has loudly criticized the ban. But a group of four oil companies are actually doing something that may help lift the drilling moratorium. A $1 billion fund has been set up by Exxon Mobil, Chevron, ConocoPhillips and Royal Dutch Shell to develop a rapid oil spill response system for the gulf. Meanwhile, BP could try an operation by this weekend called a “static kill” to permanently seal the BP oil leak. Nevertheless, the procedure might be postponed, depending on the arrival of an approaching tropical storm.
Latest drilling risks overwhelm obsolete response technology
The oil industry got a loud wakeup call from the oil spill within the Gulf of Mexico 2010 and the drilling moratorium. Billions of dollars are spent figuring out how to drill deeper and deeper wells, while oil spill cleanup technology has languished on the shelf. The New York Times reports that underwater pipeline systems intended to contain deep water well ruptures could be developed with the initial funding. The oil spill response system being developed by the participating oil companies will be expected to work down to 10,000 feet deep and capture up to 100,000 barrels a day.
Oil companies try deeds rather than words
The oil spill response initiative is the oil companies’ best hope to get the six month ban on deep water drilling lifted as soon as possible. The Wall Street Journal reports that the system resembles the one developed by BP during three months of trial and error after the Deepwater Horizon exploded April 20 . The Marine Well Containment Business is a non-profit venture set up to develop the system, which might be ready to deploy within 18 months.
Approaching storms increase urgency of oil spill containment
The BP oil leak could be sealed permanently this weekend with a tactic called a “static kill”. A static kill, as outlined by CNN, is a procedure where mud is pumped into the well to force oil back into the reservoir. Officials from BP have said the “static kill” option could succeed where comparable attempts have failed because pressure in the well is lower than expected. Even so, BP continues to drill the permanent relief well that could possibly be ready at the end of the month. The timing of the static kill is crucial because operations could possibly be disrupted for up to two weeks by a tropical storm headed for the gulf.
Citations
nytimes.com
wsj.com
cnn.com
