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Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #180 on Nov 4, 2009, 10:49am »
Date: 4 November 2009 1245 WST
PTTEP Australasia reports today that the Montara well head situation remains stable following yesterday’s successful well kill operation. The well is under control and the fire on the West Atlas rig and Montara well head platform has been extinguished.
Thermal imaging technology being used on the fire control vessel Nor Captain this morning showed the main fife damaged area on the rig and platform had cooled down to around 80 degrees Celsius and continues to lose heat quickly.
A specialist team from ALERT Well Control on the West Triton rig is today making preparations to re-board the West Atlas and well head platform. Once aboard, the specialist team will conduct a damage assessment of the well head prior to plugging the well. Assessments and safety preparations will determine how the next phase to plug the well will be carried out
The company expects the well head platform will be re-boarded by next week following safety assessment and approval by the National Offshore Petroleum Safety Authority.
Once the well head platform has been secured, specialist personnel from the owners of the West Atlas drill rig, Atlas Drilling (S) Pte Ltd, may attempt to re-board the West Atlas to assess the damage caused by the fire. Atlas Drilling (S) Pte Ltd is a wholly owned subsidiary of Seadrill Limited. Any questions relating to the damage to the West Atlas rig should be directed to Seadrill Limited.
WOW, lots of opinions on what happened. In reality, humon error started it and things just got worse thereonafter. Having been the drilling manager for an oil company here in Kazakhstan when a well blew out was one of the most helpless feelings I've ever had. We managed to bring the well under control after 4 days and did not loose any equipment (we lowered the derrick with the drill line attached to a dozer) or personnel harmed, but what started as a gas flow out the drill pipe quickly led to casing errosion, drill pipe errosion, which led to gas blowing from between the conductor and surface casing and not just the drill pipe and annulus (preventors are not much use when gas is blowing between the surface casing and conductor as the casing had erroded). Once we finally got the well under control all hell broke loose with the local authorities.
My guess with the Atlas Rig is that what started out as a fairly managable problem soon esculated to beyond anyone's control. As mentioned above, one thing leads to another, and it generally isn't good. Just very lucky no one was hurt. Looking at the rig it is salvagable. You would be surprise at what point the they write off those Jack-ups.
Not counting setting plugs for the well and securing it and plugging back the relief well, ....What happens next ? as far as removing the Atlas is concerned ? Will they need a crane to extricate from the seabed. I doubt very much they can fix things to make it possible to jack down. ..and also how long does such an operation take including removing the collapsed cantilever from the platform and debris from the collapsed derrick ? Anyone here know of a similar situation previously ?
Joined: Mar 2003 Gender: Male Posts: 2,623 Location: England/Singapore
Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #183 on Nov 5, 2009, 2:22pm »
Date: 5 November 2009 1530 WST
PTTEP Australasia has conducted a close-In helicopter flight around the Montara well head platform and West Atlas drilling rig In the Timer Sea today to better assess the damage caused by fire which was extinguished earlier this week and plan for the next phase of the operation.
Thermal imaging technology’ being used on the support vessel Nor Captain has shown the main fire-damaged area on the West Atlas and well head platform has cooled down to the ambient air temperature.
This allowed the flight to be made safely and give the specialist team from ALERT Well Control their first close-up look since the fire was extinguished on Tuesday (3 November) after the well was ‘killed’.
The team has been standing off, onboard the Nor Captain., monitoring the situation and is progressing plans to re-board the well head platform next week. This afternoon’s flight allowed them to gather more vessel data to help progress that planning.
PTTEP is carrying out a safety assessment for the re-boarding operation and is working with the National Offshore Petroleum Safety Authority (NOPSA) to obtain approvals for the proposed re-boarding operation.
Once aboard the well head platform, the team will conduct detailed assessments and safety preparations to determine how the next phase to plug and fully secure the 1-11 well will be carried out following the damage caused by the fire.
The Montara well head situation remains stable following the successful well kill operation.
Joined: Mar 2003 Gender: Male Posts: 2,623 Location: England/Singapore
Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #184 on Nov 7, 2009, 11:11am »
Extract from Seadrill latest financial report
The company announced it does not expect to have a "major loss" related to its West Atlas drilling rig, badly damaged in a fire off the coast of Australia following the country's third-worst oil spill.
"There won't be a major loss related to this because the rig is well insured," CEO Alf Thorkildsen said in a phone interview yesterday, without elaborating.
The West Atlas rig was insured for $200 million by a syndicate of companies in London and in Norway, Mr. Thorkildsen said, without naming them. The unit has a book value of $143 million, he added.
West Atlas caught fire on November 1 along with PTT Exploration & Production plc.'s Montara wellhead platform.
The blaze broke out during attempts to plug a leak by pumping heavy mud into the well, according to PTTEP Australasia, a unit of PTT Exploration & Production.
The leak has now been stopped and the fire extinguished.
Joined: Jun 2003 Gender: Male Posts: 188 Location: PERTH WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #185 on Nov 9, 2009, 7:28am »
PTTEP Australasia reports planning continues through safety assessments to be presented to the National Offshore Petroleum Safety Authority (NOPSA) this week, prior to reboarding the Montara well head platform. The PTTEP drilling team and ALERT Well Control specialists continue to look at all options to assess the fire damage and determine the best and safest way to plug the H1 well. The Montara well head platform and H1 well remain stable following the successful well kill operation last week.
Joined: Mar 2003 Gender: Male Posts: 2,623 Location: England/Singapore
Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #186 on Nov 12, 2009, 11:31am »
Not too much news coming out, not sure if they have boarded the platform as of the posting but at least we can see what they will be up against when the clean up starts
Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #187 on Nov 12, 2009, 1:59pm »
I would expect that such a disaster could have been prevented much earlier than it did, if a community like for example this discussion board was involved to provide ideas and suggestions. That is one of the powers of the Internet today, where one have a fantastic network of resources and knowledge available, 24/7, globally. Is there anyone that has a more detailed knowledge about what happened before and when the blow-out started?
Joined: Jun 2003 Gender: Male Posts: 188 Location: PERTH WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #188 on Nov 12, 2009, 10:44pm »
The comments re getting a faster result if different techniques were employed is close to my heart. I cannot get anywhere near the individuals who allowed the blow-out or took, what I consider to be, an inordinate period of time to get the Kill-mud to the kicking well bore. I have attempted to contact Australian Government Officials without success. My Member, Steve Irons Federal MP for Swan, ignores my letters. I assume that the whole episode is going to be a white-wash. Len, quite correctly disallowed some conjecture on these pages that suggested that bridge-plugs where not used. If anything like that happened we are all culpable.
Joined: Oct 2009 Gender: Male Posts: 3 Location: Queensland, Australia
Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #189 on Nov 14, 2009, 5:15am »
Thanks for the updates leonard, it amazes me how long the well was uncontrolled for? I dear say the finger pointing will start to flow as fast the well was now! Any more indepth information on the incident would be good to hear.
* Amanda O'Brien * From: The Australian * November 04, 2009 12:00AM
WEST Australian Premier Colin Barnett has questioned the safety of Shell's plan to have the world's first floating LNG platform off Western Australia, saying yesterday that the disastrous oil and gas leak and fire on a rig off the Kimberley coast should cause a rethink of many activities.
Mr Barnett raised concerns also over plans by Inpex to build an 800km subsea gas pipeline to take gas from the Browse Basin off Western Australia to Darwin for processing, saying he did not believe it was safe.
As PTTEP Australasia continued yesterday to count the cost of its devastating 10-week oil and gas leak and this week's fire on its West Atlas rig, Mr Barnett said the debacle had damaged the industry's reputation and lessons must be learned.
He said the Shell and Inpex plans were alarming.
"I recognise a floating LNG plant might be the only way of commercially developing smaller gas fields, but if you think of the scenario, you have large amounts of gas and most likely condensate stored on a vessel that is also engaged in production and processing," he said.
"Should there be an accident it would be far more difficult to control than, for example, an onshore facility."
He said the Inpex plan to pipe gas to Darwin was also disturbing.
"You've again got to look at the issue of a pipeline 800km in length at deep water through a geologically unstable part of the world and think: 'is that the safest and best way to process that gas?'.
"I would say, at face value, no. You would bring it onshore at the closest acceptable landsite (in Wwstern Australia)."
Mr Barnett has had a continuing battle with Inpex after the company withdrew plans to process the Browse gas at a new facility to be built in Western Australia and opted instead to divert it to Darwin for processing.
But yesterday, he upped the ante by embroiling it in the PTTEP disaster, accused the Japanese company of being "silly" and challenged the federal government to act.
"We continue to say to Inpex that we don't believe that is the best way to develop that gas resource," he said.
"It adds massively to the cost of the project, this 800km pipeline is about $4 million a kilometre," he said.
"Given that that will be an expense to the project, it will also be a tax deduction, so effectively the Australian taxpayer will fund half the cost of that. I think that's a very silly way of developing a natural resource.
"This is Australia's natural resource and as a country, we should insist that it is developed in the safest, most economical way."
West Atlas drill rig to be written-off 10 November 2009 Print this article Comments Share this article
West Atlas drill rig to be written-offSEADRILL has announced it mayhave to write-off the West Atlas drill rig after it caught on fire in the Timor Sea last week.
The West Atlas drill rig was built by Keppel Fels in 2007 for $129 million but Seadrill has yet to confirm the current state value.
The PTTEP Australasia says they are currently assessing the fire damages and the results will be presented to the National Offshore Petroleum Safety Authority (NOPSA).
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Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #192 on Nov 15, 2009, 7:57am »
SDRL - The West Atlas incident Nov 11
Sedrill latest press release
The fire on Seadrill's West Atlas mobile offshore drilling unit and PTTEPA's Montara wellhead platform in the Timor Sea was extinguished on 3 November 2009, following a successful operation by Seadrill's West Triton mobile drilling unit to intercept and kill a leaking well.
Seadrill is now working to assess and establish the damage to the West Atlas. Visual inspection confirms that the rig's steel cantilever structure, which is extended over the Montara well-head platform, has been buckled and deformed by the fire.
The next step is to send a specialist team onboard the West Atlas to establish whether it is safe for additional personnel to board in order to continue well capping operations and to do a full assessment of the structural damage to the West Atlas.
Preliminary indications, based only on the visual inspection of the damage, indicate that it could take a number of months to remove the West Atlas rig from the vicinity of the Montara wellhead platform.
The West Triton currently remains on location, approximately two kilometres from the West Atlas, as it is still required by PTTEPA to monitor and complete well plugging operations.
More information will be released as it becomes available.
Seadrill Limited Hamilton Bermuda November 11, 2009
Joined: Mar 2003 Gender: Male Posts: 2,623 Location: England/Singapore
Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #193 on Nov 15, 2009, 8:06am »
Date: 13 November 2009 1310 WST
PTTEP Australasia (PTTEP) reports thorough planning continues to determine the best and safest way to plug the HI well.
The situation on the Montara well head platform and HI well remains stable after last week’s successful well kill operation following the injection of heavy mud to stop the flow of oil, gas and water.
The PTTEP drilling team and ALERT Well Control engineers are assessing data gathered on site in the Timor Sea during the week to develop the s1rate to undertake the HI well plugging operation.
PTTEP continues to work with the National Offshore Petroleum Safety Authority (NOPSA) to obtain acceptance of the variation to the safety case for a re-boarding of the Montara well head platform.
Due to continuing assessment of safety issues, any plugging operation is not expected to take place until next week.
Posted November 17, 2009 19:29:00 Maritime authorities say oil from the striken Montar well is dispersing.
The oil spill off the Western Australian coast has been plugged, and the accompanying fire put out, but the environmental effects are expected to take years to fix.
The Australian Maritime Safety Authority says oil that leaked from a well off the Kimberley coast last month has shifted further offshore.
The Montara well which forms part of the West Atlas rig, was plugged two weeks ago after leaking oil for two and a half months.
AMSA's clean-up efforts will continue indefinitely, with boats, planes and 300 staff remaining onsite in case the well leaks again.
Authority spokeswoman Tracey Jiggins says the amount of oil in the water is decreasing.
"We have had isolated patches of oil seen to within about 30 kilometres of the coastline, so that has moved out considerably," she said.
"We saw some oil closer in last week but that's now dispersed itself or broken up and we now haven't seen anything closer than about 69 kilometres".
A senior US senator has demanded a federal investigation into the company responsible for operating the crippled oil rig at the Montara oil project which spewed thousands of barrels of condensate into the Timor Sea.
Fearful of the potential for a similar spill off the US coast, New Jersey Democarat Robert Menendez, a member of the US Government's Energy and Natural Resources Committee, has demanded a formal investigation into the activities of Seadrill Limited, the Norwegian-listed company which owns both the crippled West Atlas rig at Montara, and the West Triton relief rig used to plug the well two weeks ago.
Noting that Seadrill had at least one rig operating off the US east coast in the Gulf of Mexico, Senator Menendez overnight sent a letter demanding a full investigation into Seadrill to US Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar.
In his letter, sent on the eve of an Energy Committee hearing on coastline drilling, Senator Menendez raised numerous concerns about the potential for oil spills from drilling along the US coastline.
"We have heard much conjecture by industry that oil drilling accidents cannot happen here in the United Sates because the technology is too advanced," wrote Senator Menendez. "As a firm that is considered an international leader in drilling, with what is considered one of the "most modern fleets in the world" - Seadrill has proven that accidents do, in fact, happen.
"It remains unclear exactly what caused the accident in the Timor Sea, and pending a comprehensive investigation being conducted by Australian authorities, it is clear that we must do all we can to ensure that this kind of tragedy is not repeated on our coasts.
"It is imperative that we understand the extent of Seadrill's operations here in the United States and ensure they are operating as safely as possible. I therefore request a full investigation of this firm and a careful review of Seadrill's compliance with American safety standards."
Seadrill this month said it may have to completely write off the West Atlas rig, which cost $US129 million to build in 2007, as a result of the fire which erupted when the leak was finally plugged two weeks ago.
Australia's federal government has already announced a full investigation into the spill with the powers of a royal commission.
Additionally, a search by WA Business News has revealed that Seadrill is also a 24.3 per cent owner of Malaysia-based SapuraCrest Petroleum, which in partnership with Norway's Acergy, last month won a $195 million contract for the offshore development work at Apache Energy's Reindeer gas field that will supply the Devil Creek domestic gas plant in the Pilbara.
The Montara spill off Australia proves that coastal states’ concerns are not stuck in the past, Menendez said. “Is it really so outdated in view of what just happened off the coast of Australia for over 10 weeks when oil spilled and caught fire before being plugged? Am I just being old-fashioned when that same entity is working in US waters?” he asked. But when Dorgan asked Cruickshank if reports that the well would not have met MMS standards were true, the MMS official said that was the case. “The well design was one we would not have approved. They allowed a single barrier, where we would have required multiple barriers, for example,” he explained.........................
Joined: Nov 2003 Gender: Male Posts: 34 Location: Maadi Cairo Egypt
Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #198 on Nov 21, 2009, 2:55pm »
Its good to see the start of the other enforcement agencies starting to look at this self created mess I can already see the Royal commission from Aussie land will be a well read document I just hope they learned something from it cause the rest of the industry everywhere will pay for this one for a long time.
Joined: Jun 2003 Gender: Male Posts: 188 Location: PERTH WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #199 on Nov 22, 2009, 1:17am »
A US Government official has said the well that caused the big Timor Sea oil spill would not have been approved in America.
The official from the agency that oversees offshore drilling leases in the US has told a hearing in Washington that the design of the Montara well did not meet US standards.
Walter Cruickshank, deputy director of the Minerals Management Service, said his agency would have demanded more protective barriers and that pressure testing be done.
He made the comments after environmentalists and a Democrat senator used the 10-week Montara spill to warn the US Senate's energy and natural resources committee of the potential dangers of offshore drilling.
"The well design is not one that we would have approved," Mr Cruickshank said. "They had a single barrier to control the well. We require redundant barriers.
"We also require that the barriers be tested at pressures at least as great as those expected to be found in the reservoir. It's our understanding there was no such requirement to test the barrier offshore Australia." Oil field operator PTTEP Australasia has not confirmed how many barriers the Montara well had. Most big oil and gas companies are understood to have two barriers in place when a well is not being accessed.
Company director Jose Martins has said the company knew what caused the spill - which was stopped on November 3 - but could not make that information public before the Government's inquiry into the incident is held.
A PTTEP spokesman said yesterday the company had been operating under Australian regulatory standards set by the Government.
"Industry standards in this country are recognised worldwide as being extremely high," the spokesman said.
New Jersey Senator Robert Menendez addressed the US committee alongside a poster-size picture of the West Atlas rig when it caught fire earlier this month during efforts to stop the leak. He has written to the US Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar, requesting an investigation into the activities in US waters of the multinational driller Seadrill, owner of the West Atlas, because of the Montara spill.
Joined: Jun 2003 Gender: Male Posts: 188 Location: PERTH WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #200 on Nov 22, 2009, 1:27am »
These are comments by unexperienced journalists and grand standing politicians. Having worked under the regulations of both countries I would like to say that the standards and the inspection levels are similar. The requirement of two barriers and pressure testing is the same . What happened on Montara could have happened in the USA. In spite of providing the barriers and testing them, the barriers failed. The reason for this failure will come out in the inquiry. I do not believe that Australian Drilling Standards are lax. More agency interference will not prevent accidents. Each and every individual needs to be responsible and 'whistle blowers' need reward and protection.
Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #201 on Nov 22, 2009, 2:47am »
Australian government reps stated that post inquiry findings will determine or warrant improved or additional regulations to prevent a reoccurrence of such incidents in the future based of lessons learnt.
As mentioned in the last post, standards are already high, but standards don’t just need new regulations but are also defined by compliance and enforcement. Compliance will mean more rig days to do the job safely, within realistic budget and meet the well’s objectives minus short cuts or shonky or “competitive” cost savings measures that places supervisors between a rock and a hard place. Put simply, they can’t have it both ways.
For example: My driller is used to mixing cement, he’s been in the field for 25 years but these days the cementer hands him a recipe of 15 different ingredients to prepare for mixing. Then the guy goes to sleep leaving the chore to the driller. I can’t order him to wake up to supervise things because the rules state that he must get some sleep for safety reasons. Why is there only one cementer on the rig ? Then when we pump cement the sole mud engineer on board, citing safety rules pertaining to fatigue sleeps throughout the entire operation.
Contracts are not always awarded to the lowest bidder. Their track record is taken into account. If an interested party cannot afford the extra cost associated with compliance to safe drilling, completion and production practices and engineering design, award it to an operator that is responsible and willing enough to shoulder the extra cost.
In order to enforce compliance government remuneration must reach parity with oilfield rates to attract experienced oilfield engineers into their ranks who will be allowed to do the job without fear or favor. They too can’t have it both ways.
Joined: Mar 2003 Gender: Male Posts: 2,623 Location: England/Singapore
Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #202 on Nov 22, 2009, 7:12am »
“A senior US senator has demanded a federal investigation into the company responsible for operating the crippled oil rig at the Montara oil project which spewed thousands of barrels of condensate into the Timor Sea.”
What a JOKE? Is this man say that companies like Chevron, Shell, BP and the likes are prepared to except sub standard rig? These people need to put there foot in their mouth and engaged the brain (if they have any) before they make such statements, they should keep to kissing babies, keeping their teeth white and writing their uninteresting life story, they may be given a little more respect if they were to look at the safety on some of the land operations being carried out in the states right now, 3 people killed in the past week and many more over the past year, that does not count the numbers injured.
The drilling contractor in the Australian issue is not at fault, their rigs are as safe and as safely run as rig in the state or anywhere else in the world and providing they had not entered well before hand, and then abandon it in an unsafe condition? The people at fault are the oil company, for whatever reason I dough if we will ever know,
As for any inquiry: to long has passed since the incident first happened and unless they have already started it and interview the people that were on the rig at the time of the incident and those that were on the rig that did the pre-drilling not much will come from the lead up to this incident.
It is also important that the people involved in the inquiry have nothing to do with the oil company, the well control advisers and the safety people involved in the operation, all that will happen is that safety measures already in place will become regulations and more meaningless regulations will be put forward,
As for the investigation the board it should be made up of members that have nothing to do with the oil company involved or any of the people involved in the operation preferably people old enough not to have to worry about getting a job after, no Political no safety people or there will be a lot of covering up, All people involved in the relief well procedure should be called as witnesses, others that were not involve but offered assistance should be called, no stone should be left unturned,
Call it a witch hunt or whatever, the damage this has done to our industry is far reaching and will take us many years to get back to this point, mistakes we can learn from, but incompetence????
Joined: Jun 2003 Gender: Male Posts: 188 Location: PERTH WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #203 on Nov 22, 2009, 9:56am »
No date or location determined for the inquiry!!
Mnister for Resources, Energy and Tourism, the Hon Martin Ferguson AM MP today released details of a Commission of Inquiry into the uncontrolled release of oil and gas from the Montara Wellhead Platform in the Timor Sea. Mr David Borthwick AO PSM will be the Commissioner conducting the Inquiry.
Mr Borthwick is a widely respected leader in Government and community circles and is well qualified to conduct this investigation. As the Commissioner he will have the authority to appoint experts in relevant fields to assist him in this important task. Personnel from my Department and the Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts will also provide support to the Commissioner.
Mr Borthwick has had a distinguished career as a senior officer of the Commonwealth public service, most recently as Secretary of the Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts, a position from which he retired earlier this year. He has also served within the Treasury, Health, and Prime Minister and Cabinet portfolios.
Minister Ferguson said, “The Montara Commission of Inquiry is established under amendments to the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006 I introduced, and which received the support of all parties in the Parliament, in September.”
This Inquiry possesses the powers and authority of a Royal Commission. It will have power to summon witnesses, take evidence on oath and require individuals and corporations to give the Commission documents relevant to its terms of reference. The Inquiry will also receive public submissions. The Commissioner will determine further details of how the Inquiry will be conducted.
Consistent with the proven approach taken by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau the Commission of Inquiry will receive evidence on a “no blame basis”. Independent of the Commission of Inquiry, the relevant regulatory processes will determine whether any non-compliance with the law has occurred and whether any measures to seek penalties and other sanctions should be pursued.
In accordance with the Terms of Reference, Mr Borthwick will investigate and report on:
· The likely cause(s) of the incident;
· The adequacy and effectiveness of the regulatory regime, including approved safety, environment and resource management arrangements;
· The performance of relevant persons in carrying out their obligations under the regulatory regime;
· The adequacy of response requirements and the actual response to the incident;
· The environmental impacts as a result of the incident, including reviewing environmental monitoring plans; and
· The offshore petroleum industry’s response to the incident and the provision and accessibility of information concerning the incident to stakeholders and the Australian community.
Minister Ferguson said, “I have also asked Mr Borthwick to make recommendations to Ministers, regulators and the industry, as appropriate, on measures that might mitigate against similar incidents occurring in the future and alleviate the safety, environmental and resource impacts arising from such an incident.”
The Commissioner will present his report to me before the end of April 2010.
Concurrent with the Commission of Inquiry, the following investigations and reviews are being progressed by the Australian Government:
· NOPSA is investigating all aspects of the incident concerning occupational health and safety;
· The Northern Territory Department of Regional Development, Primary Industry, Fisheries and Resources is investigating all aspects of compliance with the regulatory regime applied under the Offshore Petroleum and Greenhouse Gas Storage Act 2006;
· The Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts is undertaking an audit of compliance with the conditions of Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 approval relating to the drilling and other activities on the Montara wellhead platform; and · Under the National Plan to Combat Pollution of the Sea by Oil and other Noxious and Hazardous Substances, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority will undertake a separate review into the effectiveness of the response to the incident.
The NATPLAN Review will be chaired by Mr Jim Starkey, an independent consultant with significant executive experience in the petroleum industry, the Australian Public Service and as a former chairman of the National Plan Management Committee responsible for oversight of Australia's oil spill preparedness and response capabilities.
The review team will involve the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, relevant Commonwealth departments, the Western Australian Government and the Australian Marine Oil Spill Centre. Public submissions will be called for and considered. The Montara Commission of Inquiry will, to the extent practical, take into account these investigations and reviews. The outcomes will enable lessons to be learnt and improvements to be made by all stakeholders, including Government and industry.
Minister Ferguson said, "It is vital that we learn from this incident and take any necessary steps to stop it happening again."
Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #204 on Nov 22, 2009, 1:03pm »
We all know the damage this has done to the industry's reputation. The objective of the inquiry is to prevent this from happening again but I hope they don't lose sight of the "what if 's ".
The situation was volatile from the onset of the incident and this has been proven with the ignition of the blowout.The supervisors who got everyone off the rig will sleep well for the rest of their lives, for richer or for poorer. The calms seas and good weather were in our favor.
"What if" this turned into a "Piper Alpha" sequel. Just imagine the consequences and the impact it would have on all of us. Perth is a small place. If 100 personnel lost their lives multiply this by 4 for the average family = 400 people directly affected, not counting workmates, friends, and acquaintances, etc.
Politicians need the numbers and popularity but I hope their ego's don't blind them into believing their own disconnected spin because as things stand this problem could occur again tomorrow if people lull themselves into thinking it was not so bad because no lives were lost and brand others who think otherwise as alarmist .....then what ?.
PTTEP announced that they will permanently plug the well the week ending Saturday Nov 21st 2009 in their last publicized report on their website dated 13th October 2009. Not a word since then. Are these guys in the least bit concerned about their credibility ?
.........The worker, who was not named by Mr Ferguson, said no one on board the rig had anticipated the events that led to the spill.
“Please believe me that no one on board ever thought this situation would ever arise and we are not environmental terrorists who have no regard for the environment and wildlife,” the worker said.
“This the furthest from the truth.................
Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #207 on Nov 23, 2009, 3:01pm »
Please find below an extract from "Upstream Online" 23/11/09.
Crew Boards Crippled Montara Platform
A three-man team has boarded the Montara wellhead platform for the first time since a blowout at the Timor Sea installation on 21 August.
The crew, from Alert Well Control, are evaluating the damage to the Seadrill-owned jack-up West Atlas and the platform, PTTEP said.
The evaluation will also include a safety assessment as PTTEP considers how best to plug and fully secure the Montara H1 well.
PTTEP said the wellhead platform and blown-out H1 well remain stable after the leaking bore was successfully killed on 3 November.
Company director Jose Martins said a preliminary assessment of the rig shows extensive damage to equipment from a fire which erupted on the wellhead platform on 1 November.
He said the reboarding team were surveying the structural integrity of the West Atlas' cantilever which buckled in the platform fire.
“PTTEP will ensure everything possible has been done to assess the risks before undertaking the plugging operation. The safety of personnel remains our first priority,” Martins added.
Joined: Nov 2009 Gender: Male Posts: 8 Location: Chengdu
Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #208 on Nov 23, 2009, 11:00pm »
I read my country's news report. It seems that the well started flowing once before the accident, but only when the slug went into the hole, it happened.
Chinese, English & German translation and interpretation. 0086-13408653248.\\\/// Translation will be an important tool to transform the whole life of people.
Re: Oil, Gas Leak on Seadrill West Atlas Jackup - « Reply #209 on Nov 23, 2009, 11:06pm »
Maybe now someone will look at the dismal record of PTTEP over the last year or so with blow out in Iran, rig burned up in thailand, lost 5 BHA's in Thailand reciently & etc. PTTEP practices and some of management need high up need looking at seriously,,,,,,,,
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