Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks - The Macondo 252 well is now officially DEAD

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

DATE: July 17, 2010 15:52:13 CST

Statement by National Incident Commander Admiral Thad Allen On Well Integrity Test

WASHINGTON - The federal science team has been closely overseeing BP's well integrity test with the goal of first doing no harm to the well. Based on the data and pressure readings compiled to date, the test has provided us with valuable information which will inform the procedure to kill the well and a better understanding of options for temporary shut in during a hurricane.


As we continue to see success in the temporary halt of oil from the leak, the US government and BP have agreed to allow the well integrity test to continue another 24 hours.


The government has ordered additional monitoring of the area while the test continues which includes doubling the seismic mapping runs over the well site. A NOAA sonar ship has also been brought to the site to assist in monitoring the entire sea floor area around the well. The ship will make regular passes around the well looking for any hydrocarbon release subsea, and both acoustic and visual monitoring of the area with ROV's will continue.

The pressure in the capping stack continues to increase very slowly and we want to continue to monitor this progress.


When this test is eventually stopped, we will immediately return to containment, using the new, tighter sealing cap with both the Helix Producer and the Q4000. Additional collection capacity of up to 80,000 barrels per day is also being added in the coming days.


Progress also continues on the two relief wells the federal government has required BP to drill. The relief well remains the ultimate step in stopping the BP oil leak for good.

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http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/doc/2931/790207/

 

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

18 July 2010 Last updated at 11:22 ET
<SCRIPT type=text/javascript> <!--$render("page-bookmark-links","page-bookmark-links-head",{ position:"top", site:'News', headline:'BBC News - BP pushes to keep new cap on well', storyId:'10678012', sectionId:'99127', url:'http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-10678012', edition:'US' }); --></SCRIPT>BP pushes to keep new cap on well

Boats on the surface are ready to resume collecting the oil

BP wants a new cap on its Gulf of Mexico well to stay in place until relief wells stop the leak for good.

Tests on the cap - which on Thursday stopped oil leaking for the first time since an April accident - continue.

But BP's chief operating officer Doug Suttles said there was "no target" to re-open the cap and let oil flow again.

The US had expected BP to re-open the cap and resume funnelling oil to the surface once testing was complete, until the relief wells were ready.

Admiral Thad Allen, who heads the US government relief effort, said on Saturday that once a three-day pressure test was completed, the leaking well would be connected by pipes to surface vessels capable of collecting 80,000 barrel of oil per day.

'Encouraging signs'

Growing evidence that the cap is holding up to the pressure building within the well below it has, however, prompted BP to suggest an alternative course of action.

"No-one associated with this whole activity wants to see any more oil flow into the Gulf of Mexico," Mr Suttles said on Sunday.

"We're hopeful that if the encouraging signs continue that we'll be able to continue the integrity test all the way to the point that we get the well killed.

BP's Doug Suttles (L) has become the face of the firm's operation

"Right now we don't have a target to return the well to flow," he said, adding: "We're not seeing any problems at this point with the shut-in."

Pressure within the well is continuing to rise, seen as a key indication that the cap is doing its job in containing the oil. Low pressure readings would indicate that oil was leaking elsewhere in the well.

The flow of oil was shut off at 1425 local time (1925 GMT) on Thursday and testing has continued since then.

Any move to keep the cap on would have to be approved by the US government.

US policy has been consistent since the oil flow was first stopped, with Adm Allen saying a seismic test on the well area would be required once initial testing was complete.

"We can go back then and put the system under pressure again. Once we are convinced we can certainly consider shutting in the well, that is always possible and we would certainly look to do that," he said on Thursday.

The possibility of using the cap to close the well permanently was described as a "side-benefit" by the US commander.

Whatever happens will be a temporary solution, ahead of a relief well being used permanently to "kill" the original well with mud and cement.

Work on both of the relief wells is currently suspended because of the integrity test. One of the relief wells is within 4-5ft horizontally and 100ft vertically of intersecting.

.../

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-10678012

 

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

DATE: July 18, 2010 11:37:44 CST

Statement by National Incident Commander Admiral Thad Allen On Well Integrity Test

WASHINGTON - Per my conversation with BP Executive Bob Dudley as recently as 11 a.m. EST today, nothing has changed about the joint agreement announced yesterday between BP and the US government. The ongoing well integrity test will continue until 4 p.m. EST today, with the potential for additional extensions in 24-hour increments. As a condition of the extension, the US government has required significant new monitoring and periodic evaluation and approval by our science team.


Work must continue to better understand the lower than expected pressure readings. This work centers on two plausible scenarios, depletion of oil from the reservoir and potential leakage caused by damage to the well bore or casing.


While we are pleased that no oil is currently being released into the Gulf of Mexico and want to take all appropriate action to keep it that way, it is important that all decisions are driven by the science. Ultimately, we must ensure no irreversible damage is done which could cause uncontrolled leakage from numerous points on the sea floor.

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http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/doc/2931/790959/

 

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Associated Press says oil may be seeping from BP well

Published: Sunday, July 18, 2010, 4:55 PM Updated: Sunday, July 18, 2010, 4:58 PM

The Associated Press


A federal official said Sunday that scientists are concerned about a seep and possible methane seen near BP's busted oil well in the Gulf of Mexico.

Both could be signs there are leaks in the well that's been capped off for three days.


The official spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Sunday because an announcement about the next steps had not yet been made.

The official is familiar with the spill oversight but would not clarify what is seeping near the well. The official said BP is not complying with the government's demand for more monitoring. BP spokesman Mark Salt declined to comment on the allegation, but said "we continue to work very closely with all government scientists on this."


Retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen will make the final decisions on the next step. The official said Allen would issue a letter to BP shortly allowing testing to proceed in 24-hour increments, but also requiring more analysis of the seep and the possible observation of methane over the well.

If Allen doesn't get the response he wants, the testing could stop, the official said.

The custom-built cap that finally cut off the oil flowing from BP's broken well three days ago was holding steady Sunday.

A BP official said the company hoped to leave the cap in place until crews can permanently kill the leak.


That differs from the plan the federal government laid out a day earlier, in which millions more gallons of oil could be released before the cap is connected to tankers at the surface and oil is sent to be collected through a mile of pipes.

Federal officials wary of making the well unstable have said that plan would relieve pressure on the cap and may be the safer option, but it would mean three days of oil flowing into the Gulf before the collection begins.

http://www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2010/07/associated_press_says_oil_may.html

 

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Gulf Oil Seep: Methane, Leak Suspected Near BP's Blown Out Oil Well
First Posted: 07-18-10 05:56 PM | Updated: 07-18-10 05:59 PM



NEW ORLEANS (Associated Press))- A federal official said Sunday that scientists are concerned about a seep and possible methane seen near BP's busted oil well in the Gulf of Mexico.

Both could be signs there are leaks in the well that's been capped off for three days.

The official spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Sunday because an announcement about the next steps had not yet been made.

continues at;
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/07/18/gulf-oil-seep-methane-sus_n_650531.html

 

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

DATE: July 18, 2010 19:41:24 CST

Letter from National Incident Commander Admiral Thad Allen to BP Chief Managing Director Bob Dudley

<TABLE style="WIDTH: 100%" border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=5><TBODY><TR><TD vAlign=top>

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</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>Today, National Incident Commander Admiral Thad Allen sent a letter to BP Chief Managing Director Bob Dudley.​

Click here to view the letter.

http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/doc/2931/791591/

Excerpt of the letter;​

Bob Dudley
Chief Managing Director
BP Group
501 West Lake Park Boulevard
Houston, Texas 77070 ​

Dear Mr. Dudley, ​

My letter to you on July 16, 2010 extended the Well Integrity Test period contingent upon the completion of seismic surveys, robust monitoring for indications of leakage, and acoustic testing by the NOAA vessel PISCES in the immediate vicinity of the well head. Given the current observations from the test, including the detected seep a distance from the well and undetermined anomalies at the well head, monitoring of the seabed is of paramount importance during the test period. As a continued condition of the test, you are required to provide as a top priority access and coordination for the monitoring systems, which include seismic and sonar surface ships and subsea ROV and acoustic systems. When seeps are detected, you are directed to marshal resources, quickly investigate, and report findings to the government in no more than four hours. I direct you to provide me a written procedure for opening the choke valve as quickly as possible without damaging the well should hydrocarbon seepage near the well head be confirmed. ​

As the National Incident Commander, I must remain abreast of the status of your source control efforts. Now that source control has evolved into a period beyond the expected 48 hour interval of the Well Integrity Test, I am requiring that you provide me a written update within 24 hours of your intentions going forward. I remain concerned that all potential options to eliminate the discharge of oil be pursued with utmost speed until I can be assured that no additional oil will spill from the Macondo Well. ​

You may use your letter of 9 July as a basis for your update. Specifically, you must provide me your latest containment plan and schedule in the event that the Well Integrity Test is suspended, the status and completion timelines for all containment options currently under development, and details of any other viable source control options including hydraulic control that you are considering. You should highlight any points at which progress along one option will be impacted by resource trade-offs to achieve progress along another option. Include options for and impacts of continued twice-a day seismic testing versus once a day testing. ​

As you develop the plans above, note that the primary method of securing the source is the relief well and this effort takes precedence. Therefore, I direct you to provide a detailed plan for the 2 final stages of the relief well that specifically addresses the interaction of this schedule and any other activity that may potentially delay relief well completion. ​

Have your representative provide results on the monitoring efforts and source control requirements described above during today?s BP and Government Science Team call at 8:00 PM CDT.

 

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Update on Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill - 19 July

Release date: 19 July 2010

BP today provided an update on developments in the response to the MC252 oil well incident in the Gulf of Mexico.
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Subsea Source Control and Containment

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BP continues to work cooperatively with the guidance and approval of the National Incident Commander and the leadership and direction of federal government including the Department of Energy, Department of the Interior, Federal Science Team, Bureau of Ocean Energy, Management, Regulation and Enforcement, U.S. Coast Guard and secretaries Ken Salazar and Steven Chu. At this time, the well integrity test on the MC252 exploratory well continues.

During the test, the three ram capping stack has been closed, shutting in the well. All sub-sea containment systems (namely, the Q4000 and Helix Producer systems) have been temporarily suspended.

The pressure inside the well recently has been measured at approximately 6,792 pounds per square inch and continues to rise slowly. As directed by the National Incident Commander, extensive monitoring activities are being carried out around the well site. Information gathered during the test is being reviewed with the government agencies, including the Federal Science Team, to determine next steps. Depending upon the results of the test and monitoring activities, these steps may include extending the well integrity test or returning to containment options.
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Should the test conclude, the Q4000 is expected to resume capturing and flaring oil and gas through the existing system. It has been capturing and flaring an average of 8,000 barrels a day (b/d) of oil in recent weeks. The Helix Producer also is expected to be available to resume capturing oil and flaring gas through the recently installed floating riser system. It has the capacity to capture approximately 20,000 ? 25,000 b/d of oil.

Plans continue for additional containment capacity and flexibility that are expected to ultimately increase recoverable oil volumes to 60,000-80,000 b/d.

The sealing cap system and many of the other containment systems have never before been deployed at these depths or under these conditions, and their efficiency and ability to contain or flare the oil and gas cannot be assured.

To date, the total volume of oil collected or flared by the containment systems is approximately 826,800 barrels. Information on the subsea operational status is updated daily on BP?s website, www.bp.com.
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Work on the first relief well, which started May 2, continues. The well reached a depth of 17,864 feet as of July 18th and the next scheduled operation is to carry out a ranging run. The first relief well has approached its last casing end point and, following the casing set, additional ranging runs will be used to guide the drill bit to a MC252 well intercept point. After interception, operations are expected to begin to kill the flow of oil and gas from the reservoir by pumping specialized heavy fluids down the relief well.

The second relief well, which started May 16, is at a measured depth of 15,874 feet and has been temporarily halted so as not to interfere with the ranging runs being performed in the first relief well.

Although uncertainty remains, the first half of August remains the current estimate of the most likely date by which the first relief well will be completed and kill operations performed.
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Surface Spill Response as of July 17

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Work continues to collect and disperse oil that has reached the surface of the sea, to protect the shoreline of the Gulf of Mexico, and to collect and clean up any oil that has reached shore.

Approximately 43,100 personnel, more than 6,470 vessels and dozens of aircraft are engaged in the response effort.

Operations to skim oil continued over the weekend. These operations have recovered, in total, approximately 807,143 barrels (33.9 million gallons) of oily liquid. In addition, a total of 408 controlled burns have been carried out to date, removing an estimated 261,904 barrels of oil (11 million gallons) from the sea?s surface.

The total length of containment boom deployed as part of efforts to prevent oil from reaching the coast is now almost 3.36 million feet (681.8 miles).
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Additional information

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To date, almost 116,000 claims have been submitted and more than 67,500 payments have been made, totalling $207 million.

The cost of the response to date amounts to approximately $3.95 billion, including the cost of the spill response, containment, relief well drilling, grants to the Gulf states, claims paid, and federal costs. On June 16, BP announced an agreed package of measures, including the creation of a $20 billion fund to satisfy certain obligations arising from the oil and gas spill. It is too early to quantify other potential costs and liabilities associated with the incident.

http://www.bp.com/genericarticle.do?categoryId=2012968&contentId=7063829

 

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

DATE: July 19, 2010 05:41:20 CST

Statement by National Incident Commander Admiral Thad Allen

Statement by National Incident Commander Admiral Thad Allen:


"Yesterday I sent BP a letter stating that there were a number of unanswered questions about the monitoring systems they committed to as a condition of the US government extending the well integrity test. Last night a conference call between the federal science team and BP representatives was convened to discuss some specific issues, including the detection of a seep near the well and the possible observation of methane over the well. During the conversation, the federal science team got the answers they were seeking and the commitment from BP to meet their monitoring and notification obligations.


Ongoing monitoring and full analysis of both the seepage and methane will continue in coordination with the science team.


I authorized BP to continue the integrity test for another 24 hours and I restated our firm position that this test will only continue if they continue to meet their obligations to rigorously monitor for any signs that this test could worsen the overall situation. At any moment, we have the ability to return to the safe containment of the oil on the surface until the time the relief well is completed and the well is permanently killed."


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http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/doc/2931/791891/

 

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Feds: Oil, gas leaking from cap on ruptured well

Associated Press
Posted on July 19, 2010 at 4:06 PM
Updated today at 5:01 PM

NEW ORLEANS (AP) ? Oil and gas are leaking from the cap on BP's ruptured oil well but the cork will stay in place for now, the federal government's point man on the spill said Monday.

The leaks ? which started late Sunday night ? aren't "consequential," retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen said, relieving concerns that they are a sign the cap is creating too much pressure underground. That could mean the cap that's stopped oil since Thursday would have to be opened.

Allen said BP could continue evaluating the cap and keeping it shut, for at least another 24 hours. He said BP must keep rigorously monitoring for any signs that this test could worsen the overall situation.

If there was a quick rise in pressure, the well would be vented immediately to keep from creating leaks deep underground, Allen said.

The next step isn't clear.

Allen seemed to budge on his previous stance that the cap would eventually be hooked up to a mile-long pipe to pump the crude to ships on the surface. That would mean flooding oil back into the sea for a few days.

Unless larger problems develop, he said he's not inclined to loosen the cap.

But he's also not sold on leaving the cap in place until the well is permanently plugged, which is what BP wants.

"I'm not prepared to say the well is shut in until the relief well is done.

There are too many uncertainties," he said Monday.
The government and BP spent two days disagreeing over what to do with the undersea machinery holding back the gusher.

"We had some concerns ... about commitments that BP had made that we did not feel that they were adequately living up to in terms of that monitoring," White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said earlier. "That was dealt with last night on a call that lasted late into the evening."

The company very much wants to avoid a repeat of millions of gallons of oil spewing from the blown well for weeks, watched live across the country on underwater video.

If the valves are kept closed, as BP wants, it's possible that no more oil will leak into the Gulf of Mexico. Work on a permanent plug is moving steadily, with crews drilling into the side of the ruptured well from deep underground. By next week, they could start blasting in mud and cement to block off the well for good.

But the government is worried that the cap on the well is causing oil and gas to leak out elsewhere, which could make the sea floor unstable and cause the well to collapse. That's why federal officials want to pump the crude to ships on the surface. That would require opening the well for a few days to relieve pressure before the pipes could be hooked up, letting millions more gallons of oil spill out in the interim.

Allen said other options are also being developed to control the oil until it can be plugged from below, including pumping mud from the top of the cap. The idea is similar to the failed top kill plan that couldn't overcome the pressure of the geyser streaming up.

They would have more control over it now, but it would not be the permanent fix, Allen said.

http://www.wwltv.com/news/national/98740849.html

 

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Subsea operational update:

• The well integrity test is ongoing and active monitoring continues.
• Currently the well remains shut-in with no oil flowing into the Gulf; any significant change to this operation will be announced via a press release.
• Pressure continues to slowly increase and is approximately 6825 psi.
• We anticipate the next update will be provided at around 9:30am CDT on July 21, 2010.

Updated July 20 at 10:30am CDT

http://www.bp.com/extendedsectiongenericarticle.do?categoryId=40&contentId=7061813

 

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Feds: Seepage near BP cap coming from another well</FORM>

By FREDERIC J. FROMMER (AP) ? 6 minutes ago

WASHINGTON ? The federal government's oil spill chief said Tuesday that seepage detected two miles from BP's oil cap is coming from another well.

There are two wells within two miles of BP's blowout, one that has been abandoned and another that is not in production.

"It's actually closer to that facility than it is to the Macondo well," the one that blew out, Retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen said at a Tuesday afternoon briefing. "The combination of that and the fact that it's not uncommon to have seepage around these" abandoned wells is what convinced engineers that BP's well wasn't the source of the seepage, he said.

There around 27,000 abandoned wells in the Gulf, and an Associated Press investigation showed this month that they're not checked for leaks.

Allen also says five leaks in and around the broken well are more like 'drips' and don't mean the well is unstable. He's extended testing of the experimental cap by another day, which means the oil will remain shut in.

The mechanical cap has stopped the oil since Thursday. But several leaks had caused mounting concern that the cap was displacing pressure and causing leaks deep underground.

If oil is leaking through bedrock and mud, it could cause instability in the sea floor and make the environmental disaster even worse and harder to fix.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5gIXWYBTpLtSayJtg41LKXpxSxVPAD9H309NO2

 

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

BP executive says 'static kill' procedure has its advantages

Published: Tuesday, July 20, 2010, 3:43 PM Updated: Tuesday, July 20, 2010, 3:56 PM


Kimberly Quillen, The Times-Picayune

A "static kill" operation would offer some key advantages to BP's effort to tame its Gulf of Mexico well, BP senior vice president Kent Wells said Tuesday afternoon.

"Unlike the 'top kill' where we had to pump at high rates and pressures, that is not required with the 'static kill,'" Wells said. "We would start pumping at low rates and pressure and after we get some mud in the hole, the pressure would start to go down. So you very quickly start seeing benefits as opposed to risk."

The static kill operation would involve pumping mud into the well through the cap in an attempt to overcome the flow of oil. Pursuing a static kill would require some modification of the Q4000, one of the vessels BP had been using to capture oil that was flowing into the Gulf. But those modifications shouldn't take very long, Wells said.

BP and federal officials could jointly decide to pursue a static kill effort within the next day or two, he said.

"We're actually going through and trying to look at the different risks," he said. "We need to keep looking at all of the procedures and plans and make sure we're not missing something, but we think there are some real benefits to moving forward with this."

Wells also said a static kill operation would not interfere with the relief well, which is considered to be the best way of permanently closing down the well.

"I would argue that we're definitely not taking our eye off the ball (by looking at a static kill)," Wells said. "In no way is the static kill getting in the way of the relief well. In fact, we're going to make sure we get the casing in the relief well before we start the static kill."

"The static kill is a good option, and we have the people and the resources to pull that off without getting in the way of the relief well.

http://www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2010/07/bp_executive_says_static_kill.html

 

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

DATE: July 20, 2010 21:21:36 CST
Transcript - PressBrief with National Incident Commander Admiral Thad Allen July 20, 2010



WASHINGTON -- Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, the National Incident Commander for the Deepwater BP Oil Spill response briefing. A downloadable audio file of the conference is available here; a full transcript of the call follows:



July 20th, 2010
3:30 p.m. EDT


Admiral Thad Allen: Thanks, Megan. Good afternoon. First of all my thanks to Attorney General Holder and his staff for hosting us here today to do the press events. If you?re wondering why I?m in the DOJ building, I like to, when I?m in town, circulate among the Cabinet officers and make sure that there aren?t any issues that I need to be dealing with and just stay aligned. And it?s helpful to have their perspective on the different problematic issues that are going on. So I had a brief meeting with the Attorney General and his staff and it was a very good meeting.

One other item of note, I will be traveling down to the Gulf later this week. And my intention on Thursday is to accompany the Vice President on a tour of facilities and local responders in and around the <?XML:NAMESPACE PREFIX = ST1 /><ST1LACE w:st="on">Mobile</ST1LACE> area. Most likely our staging base at Theodore. And I?ll now be in <ST1:CITY w:st="on"><ST1LACE w:st="on">New Orleans</ST1LACE></ST1:CITY> on Friday.

We just authorized another 24 hour period for the oil integrity test to continue. Provided that in writing to Bob Dudley just an hour or so ago. We continue to be pleased with the progress as far as monitoring responsiveness to anomalies that are detected out there. And we feel it?s indicated to go on for another 24 hours. We?ll continue that as the scientific teams from the U.S. Government and BP and other industry experts in active emissions continue to talk about the pressure difference in the well and the sources for that. That continues to be the main point of discussion.

In the meantime, we are looking for all indicators of anomalies and are working very, very hard to make sure that we don?t see any indicators that there would be any compromise to the integrity of the well head.
Just to give you an idea of what we?re looking at there in terms of those indicators, we are taking temperature readings. This is to let you know that the temperature readings down there are stable at about 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Any temperature fluctuation will be an indication of movement of products through the well bore that might be something that we should be concerned about for the nature of the product of the well bore.

We continue to run pressure versus time as we have from the start. And the current pressure is 6,834 pounds per square inch and continues to slide very slowly between one and two pounds per day. Excuse me, per hour. Sorry. And we continue to collect acoustic, sonar and seismic data. And we continue to look for anomalies such as gas bubbles.

As you know, there is some minor leaks that are around the blow out preventer and the, and the stacking cap itself. We don?t think those are consequential to the response but we are tracking them. They are the source of some hydrates in and around the material as we move forward.
As we go through the next 24 to 48 hours, we?re going to continue to analyze the seismic data. We generate a lot of that. And sometimes the computation associated with that analysis takes almost longer to do this, longer than it takes to do the seismic run.

We currently have the NOAA Vessel, Pices in place. NOAA will continue to do acoustic monitoring. We?ve got a really good system set up by now with BP that any anomalies are investigated within four hours and data provided back for us to take a look at. And to the extent that we can, we try to create some of the ways to increase our ability to collect the gas samples of the bubbles that are seen out there in seepage and to bring those to shore for further evaluation. And we?ll continue our discussions on the issue of depletion of the well and the causes of this lack of pressure or whether or not it?s caused by a leak. We?ll continue to move forward on that.

I will tell you this that while this is going on, we continue to have probably the largest most integrated response on the surface against oil that remains up there. And we assist these vessels in and around the source as they do skimming operations as well as a number of vessels in closer to shore. A total of 750 skimming vessels are out in operation. We will continue to do that. We are making great progress with the oil that was released while we were changing out the capping stacks.

And to date, the weather has been fairly good to us holding that oil near or just south of the well head. As the winds have started to change in the next 24 to 48 hours, there could be some of that oil moving to the west to northwest. And that will be back towards the Mississippi Sound, the Chandelier Breton Sounds and the southeast coast of <ST1:STATE w:st="on"><ST1LACE w:st="on">Louisiana</ST1LACE></ST1:STATE>.

In the meantime, we?re still dealing looking for oil any closer to shore. And a little bit of break in the action is allowing us to repair some equipment, get booms ready to restage and make preparations for any oil that may be coming to shore. Now I?d be glad to take your questions...

Much more:

http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/doc/2931/797707/

 

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Brewing storm threatens to interrupt work on BP oil well fix

Published: Wednesday, July 21, 2010, 3:45 PM

Tropical rainstorms moving toward the Gulf of Mexico Wednesday threatened to shut down undersea efforts to seal BP's ruptured well, interrupting work just as engineers get close to plugging the leak with mud and cement.

Retired U.S. Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen said a weather system brewing in the Caribbean could force crews to abandon their watch over the experimental cap that's been bottling oil a mile below the surface of the water for nearly a week.<!-- -->
Scientists have been scrutinizing underwater cameras and data for days, trying to determine if the cap is displacing pressure and causing leaks underground. If storms keep them from seeing the cap and getting those readings -- for up to four days, Allen said -- BP could reopen the well to avoid missing signs it is buckling.

"This is necessarily going to be a judgment call," said Allen, the federal government's point man on the Gulf of Mexico oil spill who will make the ultimate decision.

Forecasters say the storm system likely will move into the Gulf of Mexico over the weekend, although it appears to be weakening. Right now, it has a 50 percent chance of becoming a tropical depression or storm within the next 48 hours.

Even if the storm doesn't hit the area directly, it could affect containment and cleanup. Hurricane Alex didn't get closer than 500 miles from the spill in late June, yet offshore skimming in Alabama, Mississippi and Florida was essentially curtailed for nearly a week.

In Florida, crews were removing protective boom intended to buffer the state's inland waterways in the Panhandle from oil. High winds and storm surge could carry the boom into sensitive wetlands, damaging those areas.

Allen said BP and government scientists were meeting to discuss whether the cap could be monitored from the shore.

It could take several days to evacuate ships from the well site 50 miles off the Louisiana coast, where the BP-leased Deepwater Horizon rig exploded April 20, killing 11 and touching off one of America's worst environmental crises.

Allen said an evacuation could delay operations as much as two weeks before work would resume to kill the well at the bottom.
Shell Oil, the U.S. arm of Royal Dutch Shell PLC, already has begun evacuating personnel not essential to producing and drilling on their operations in the Gulf.

BP crews are in the final stages of readying a relief tunnel before boring into the side of the ruptured well to dump heavy mud and cement, sealing it for good. BP also may pump mud and cement from the top, to make efforts at the bottom easier. That procedure, called a surface kill, would occur before the well is ultimately plugged from below.

Before talk of nasty weather, BP was inching closer to completion and had hoped for a permanent plug by early August.

.../

http://www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2010/07/brewing_storm_threatens_to_int.html

 

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

DATE: July 21, 2010 17:05:21 CST

Transcript - PressBrief with National Incident Commander Admiral Thad Allen July 21, 2010

WASHINGTON -- Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen, the National Incident Commander for the Deepwater BP Oil Spill response briefing. A full transcript of the call follows:


July 21, 2010
3:30 p.m. EDT

Thad Allen: Good. Thank you. This morning I would like to focus on source control that?s happening at the well head in relation to both containment and the relief wells, and then the implications of the weather predictions that have been broadcasted for the last 24 to 48 hours about the tropical depression that?s in the vicinity of Puerto Rico this morning.

First of all, by way of process, you?ll see at mid-day ? I sent a letter to Bob Dudley, the chief managing director of BP. I authorized BP to ? I authorized BP to continue for the next 24 hours a well integrity test, but I also asked them that, given the potential for a tropical storm that could enter the Gulf of Mexico in the next 48 hours or so, to provide me an assessment of potential impacts regarding source control operations and other options to mitigate impacts of the weather. And I asked to have that no later than 8 this morning. That was actually delivered last night.

Over the night and through this morning, our science team in Houston has been talking with the BP folks regarding the various scenarios that might play out and the issues associated with the current lines of operation. I?m going to go through these each individually, and I?d be glad to take any questions you have for me after that.

First of all, just to remind you of some broad principles associated with severe weather that we?ve used as planning parameters throughout this hurricane season. As a general rule, we like to see vessels secured at a (departing) location prior to the arrival of tropical storm conditions at the sight. We have generally said that?s 120 hour threshold, but that is dependent on the storm track and the predictions by NOAA, who we are in close contact with.

Another thing to remember is we are in the process of trying to finish the relief wells and also have been assessing the feasibility and the efficacy of a static killer pumping mud down from the top. I?d like to give you the sequencing under which this would have to occur and explain that to you.

We believe that we should not start the static kill operation until we have installed the last liner run in the bottom of the relief well. And just to explain this, the relief well bore has been drilled, but the last final section that we want to reinforce with pipe needs to be done before we can begin the actual interception of the well. And that?s called running a casing line or basically a hollow steel pipe that reinforces a well bore.

Right now that well bore is open and does not have the casing in it. And it is not very far away from a place that we had concerns about regarding well integrity. And we did not want to run the risk of starting the static kill procedure, put pressure on the well, while we were in the proximity of a relief well that did not have the reinforcement of the casing.

So for that reason, the sequencing will be we have to have the casing line run first on the relief well before we would attempt a static top kill.
The other thing we want to understand is if for some reason we have to evacuate the area, we want to make sure that we optimize the amount of monitoring that we can do up to the time when we have to have vessels leave. This would include seismic monitoring, acoustic monitoring, and visual monitoring with ROVs. To that end, we are working with BP right now to understand the contingencies that would be associated with that.

As we have said before, if we have to evacuate the area to move off the area and then come back and redeploy, we can be looking at 10 to 14 day gaps in whatever our lines of operations are, whether it?s containment or actually proceeding with the drilling rig. So this is a significant issue of related weather driving in our lines of operation.

We are in discussion right now. There?ll be a principals call later on today among the cabinet officers that are involved and myself, and there?ll be briefings up to the White House later on today as we look at decision points that we?ll have to reach over the next 24 hours.

We are also mindful that there is a surveillance flight being flown into that depression today by NOAA that will give us some more information on the weather as we move forward.

If there is no impact of the weather, in other words if the path of the storm doesn?t appear to create impacts, you know, and we are free to go, we would go ahead and proceed with the well casing. And then that would be followed by making sure that it is cemented in and it is in place and securing the well bore.

At that point we could proceed to the static kill or the mud being (packed) in the top, if that is approved. And again, all those remaining options on the table are being discussed by our science team with BP in Houston as we speak.

With that, I?d be glad to take your questions.

.../


Read more:

http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/doc/2931/800407/

 

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Subsea operational update:

• The well integrity test is ongoing and active monitoring continues.
• Currently the well remains shut-in with no oil flowing into the Gulf; any significant change to this operation will be announced via a press release.
• Pressure continues to slowly increase and is approximately 6863 psi.
• We anticipate the next update will be provided at around 9:30am CDT on July 23, 2010.

Updated July 22 at 9:30am CDT

http://www.bp.com/extendedsectiongenericarticle.do?categoryId=9034427&contentId=7063885

 

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Wary of storm, BP halts work on relief well

'Static kill' possibility on hold for now too

Thursday, July 22, 2010 By Jaquetta White
Business writer


Concerned that stormy weather might force an evacuation in the Gulf of Mexico, BP temporarily suspended work on a relief well considered to be the ultimate solution for plugging the blown-out Macondo well that was gushing oil into the sea until last week, BP Vice President Kent Wells said.

The suspension of the relief well also means that any attempt to perform a "static kill" of the well also has been delayed.

"We're having to watch the weather very, very carefully now and adjust our plans accordingly," Wells said.

http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/frontpage/index.ssf?/base/news-15/127978026165060.xml&coll=1

 

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

DATE: July 22, 2010 13:18:31 CST

Severe Weather Response Plan in Place for Oil Spill Response

NEW ORLEANS ? The Unified Area Command center is tracking tropical weather near the Bahamas very closely and is constantly engaged in discussions with the National Hurricane Center, NOAA and FEMA to ensure the safety of more than 40,000 people currently assisting in the oil spill response and recovery efforts.

To prepare for the possibility of severe weather, Rear Adm. Paul Zukunft, Federal On Scene Coordinator, has directed the movement of surplus response equipment to inland staging areas. These considerations are meant to protect people, boats, boom and other equipment while planning for the safe and speedy resumption of oil spill recovery after a storm.

?We are repositioning assets away from low-lying areas to higher ground staging areas to protect our ability to respond to the dynamic requirements of the incident. The protection of the equipment and crew is paramount to ensure maximum ability to respond to any new challenges a storm may pose to the enormous mission. We are committed to following through with our response. There will be no reductions in effort, urgency or commitment even as we sustain the long-term relief effort,? said Zukunft.

Activities that are underway for storm preparedness include evacuating specialized vessels from the path of any severe weather to prevent damage and ensure that oil recovery operations can resume as soon as possible after a storm. Additionally, boom is being removed from marsh areas where oil is not threatening the shore to prevent damage from the heavy equipment getting pushed into the delicate area by strong winds and high tides.

It is necessary to begin moving equipment to inland staging areas well in advance of a potential storm. The consolidation of boom and other equipment at our inland staging areas will in no way hinder the current response operations, but will serve to protect as much of this vital resource from the elements as possible through the risky hurricane season.

Wednesday, Zukunft sent a letter to local officials to provide an update on resource protection in case of a storm. The letter can be viewed here.

http://www.deepwaterhorizonresponse.com/go/doc/2931/802471/

 

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Federal officials will decide this evening if Gulf well site needs to be evacuated in advance of storm

Published: Thursday, July 22, 2010, 2:17 PM Updated: Thursday, July 22, 2010, 2:26 PM

Kimberly Quillen, The Times-Picayune

BP and federal officials are monitoring the predicted track of a tropical depression in the Caribbean and will make a decision this evening about whether the equipment drilling a relief well will need to be detached,
National Incident Commander Thad Allen said in a press conference.

Allen also said that officials have decided that they can leave the Macondo capped if the site needs to be evacuated for the storm.

"We're under the assumption that somewhere very early Saturday we could see storm force winds at well site," said Allen, who added that it could take 24 hours for the storm to pass over teh site.

"So while this is not a hurricane, it's a storm that will have significant impacts and we're taking appropriate precautions because of that."

Allen said Development Driller Three, which is currently working on the relief well, has already placed a subsea containment device into the well to protect it and has begun retracting its drill string.

Allen held his press conference by phone from Mobile, Alabama.

http://www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2010/07/federal_officials_will_decide.html

 

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Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Re: Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster- Update on BP's attempt to stop the oil leaks

Well will remain closed if storm forces ships to evacuate, Allen says

Published: Thursday, July 22, 2010, 2:27 PM Updated: Thursday, July 22, 2010, 2:37 PM


Kimberly Quillen, The Times-Picayune

National Incident commander Thad Allen said he's confident about a plan to leave BP's Gulf of Mexico well capped during the approaching tropical depression because of a range of factors, including data that helps him better understand the area around the well.

"We're starting to create almost a 3-D model of the formation" the well is in, Allen said.

Allen said this afternoon that should the depression prompt an evacuation of the site, the well would be left capped, and remote operated vehicles would be brought back in as quickly as possible after the storm passes.

U.S. Energy Secretary Steven Chu was involved in the decision to allow the well to remain capped during a possible evacuation of the site, he said.

http://www.nola.com/news/gulf-oil-spill/index.ssf/2010/07/growing_base_of_data_gives_tha.html