BP spill: First relief well detects runaway Macondo well

July 5, 2010
The first of two relief wells was within 16 ft horizontally of the runaway deepwater Macondo well in the Gulf of Mexico off Louisiana on June 30, and drilling continued while Hurricane Alex approached Mexico, spill response spokesmen said.

The first of two relief wells was within 16 ft horizontally of the runaway deepwater Macondo well in the Gulf of Mexico off Louisiana on June 30, and drilling continued while Hurricane Alex approached Mexico, spill response spokesmen said.

Rough weather associated with Alex halted skimming efforts on the oil spill, but the collection of leaking oil and gas was continued without interruption, said National Incident Commander and retired US Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen.

The hurricane did delay preparations to expand collection capacity, Allen noted. On June 30, crews reported winds of 17-22 knots and 7-ft waves on the surface above the runaway well on Mississippi Canyon Block 252.

Kent Wells, BP PLC senior vice-president of exploration and production, said crews need 3 days of flat seas to hook up the Helix Producer floating production unit to a floating riser system. The Producer was scheduled to start receiving oil by June 30, but Wells said that was pushed back to early July.

The Producer, coupled with a tanker, is intended to provide additional oil containment capacity. Together with an existing lower marine riser package cap and the Helix Q4000 systems, the Producer floating riser system would increase total oil containment capacity to 53,000 b/d, Allen said.

The floating riser is designed to allow more rapid disconnection and reconnection of the system, reducing the time that collection might be affected in case of hurricanes, tropical storms, or other problems.

A June 30 meeting was scheduled in Washington, DC, between BP executives and federal spill response officials to review plans intended to boost oil and gas collection capacity and to discuss the logistics of installing a different sealing cap on the failed blowout preventer.

Transocean Ltd.'s Deepwater Horizon semisubmersible drilled the Macondo well for BP and partners. On Apr. 20, a blowout caused an explosion and fire on the Deepwater Horizon, killing 11 crew members. On Apr. 22, the semi sank.

Relief well drilling

The Development Driller III rig, drilling the first of two relief wells, was at 16,770 ft measured depth on June 28, Wells said, adding that the next phase of drilling will be slower than earlier relief well drilling efforts.

Crews worked cautiously to ensure the relief well was running parallel with the Macondo well. The relief well will then be angled toward Macondo, and it remained on schedule to reach completion in August, he said.

During an initial ranging run, BP detected the Macondo well. Drillers completed three ranging runs and plan another 8-12 ranging runs to ensure the relief well is precisely lined up with the Macondo well, Wells said (OGJ Online, June 25, 2010).

Wells said the plans call for the relief well to go down another 900 ft before intercepting the Macondo well. Once the relief well intercepts the original well, the relief well will be used to pump heavy mud into the runaway well.

Heavy mud was available onsite in case the relief well were to intercept the Macondo well unexpectedly, Wells said.

"This is the point in time we have to be very good at what we're doing," Wells said. "I'm really confident in the team's chances for success."

A second well, being drilled by the Development Driller II, is under way as a backup to the first relief well, and the second well will be stopped if the first well is successful, Wells said.

BP said it has spent $2.35 billion on the spill, including the cost of the spill response, containment, relief well drilling, grants to the coastal states, claims paid, and federal costs.

More Oil & Gas Journal Current Issue Articles
More Oil & Gas Journal Archives Issue Articles
View Oil and Gas Articles on PennEnergy.com