BP's Relief Well Project Delayed by Brewing Storm
July 22 (Bloomberg) -- Don Van Nieuwenhuise, director of Petroleum Geoscience Programs at the University of Houston, discusses pressure readings at BP Plc's sealed Macondo well in the Gulf of Mexico. Van Nieuwenhuise talks with Lizzie O'Leary on Bloomberg Television's "InsideTrack." (Source: Bloomberg)
BP Plc’s efforts in the Gulf of Mexico to permanently stop the biggest oil spill in U.S. history were delayed by a storm building over the Bahamas.
BP installed a cement plug yesterday as a precaution in a relief well that’s been drilled to within about five feet (1.5 meters) of the damaged Macondo well, Senior Vice President Kent Wells told reporters on a conference call. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said today the storm has developed into a tropical depression and warnings have been issued for the Bahamas and southern Florida.
Storms may force crews to evacuate the site, where the gusher has been stopped provisionally since July 15, after London-based BP closed valves on a new containment cap. National Incident Commander Thad Allen said yesterday evacuation would need to start about 5 days before a storm hits and would mean a 10- to 14-day “gap” in operations at the site.
“Today is their go, no-go day” for deciding on evacuation, Jim Rouiller, a senior energy meteorologist at Planalytics Inc. in Berwyn, Pennsylvania, said in an interview today. “Storm-force winds will definitely get up to the BP well site by early next week.”
Shoreline pollution is the worst threat from the storm, as winds may drive oil northwestward into Louisiana, Mississippi, and northeastern Texas, Rouiller said. The amount of oiled shoreline almost doubled at the end of June after storms swept the area, according to government data. About 626 miles (1,007 kilometers) of coasts in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida were tarred, the government said yesterday.
Well Integrity
BP rose less than a pence to 400 pence at 4:35 p.m. in London trading. The stock is down 39 percent since the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded on April 20, killing 11 workers and triggering the leak.
The company closed the valves to test the well’s integrity, and it’s monitoring for leaks that might signal problems as pressure builds within the well. No decision has been made on whether it’s safe to keep the well sealed, Allen said.
The official track shows it strengthening into a tropical storm in the next day and going through the Gulf south of Louisiana this weekend. It is expected to come ashore near the Louisiana-Texas border this weekend, according to hurricane center maps.
Winds in a tropical storm have to be at least 39 miles per hour and can reach as intense as 73 mph.
‘Static Kill’
BP said yesterday it would keep the Macondo well sealed for another day as it seeks government permission to attempt to pump mud into the top to help permanently stop the oil flow. Pressure inside the well has risen to 6,863 pounds per square inch since it was sealed, indicating oil and gas isn’t being forced out elsewhere, BP said today in a statement on its website.
The company has to install the last cement casing in the relief well before it can begin pumping mud into the well, Allen said yesterday. Cement casing protects the well hole from collapsing. Casing work has been postponed by insertion of the storm plug, Wells said yesterday.
BP plans to permanently plug the leaking well from the bottom with cement coming from the relief well next month, Allen said. Government experts are examining a proposal, known as “static kill,” that would involve also injecting mud into the top of the well.
“If it’s approved, there’s a 100 percent chance we’ll go ahead with it,” Wells told reporters on July 20. “Working in tandem, these could have the well killed in less time. It’s worth the time and effort.”
To contact the reporters on this story: Brian Swint in London at bswint@bloomberg.net; Alex Morales in London at amorales2@bloomberg.net.
Rate These Stories
Rate this Page