It was not like the usual proceedings in the Natural Resources Committee hearing room on the Longworth House Office Building's third floor. Maybe that was because no committee members attended the May 16 event.
Missing were Democrats' charges that the oil and gas industry was not doing enough to address global climate change, and Republicans' allegations that the Obama administration was extending its regulatory reach too far.
Instead, four speakers from industry, academia, and the administration discussed ways earth science advances have changed offshore energy before about 25 congressional and other federal staff members. They emphasized information instead of politics.
The American Association of Petroleum Geologists helped pull the event together with 11 other groups ranging from the US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement and US Geological Survey to the Association of American State Geologists and National Ground Water Association.
Their idea clearly was to brief congressional staffers and Department of Energy specialists on offshore energy technology changes that have occurred since 2004 and why they matter. Some of what they said was basic, but there were still some surprises.
"It's an exciting time to be working in the Gulf of Mexico. There also are a lot of challenges," said Eric van Oort, a petroleum engineering professor of at the University of Texas at Austin. "Industry is focusing more on human factors, particularly well control competence."
A little-known fact, he continued, is that the Deepwater Horizon-the semisubmersible rig destroyed in an explosion at BP's Macondo deepwater well in 2010-had successfully drilled the Tiger well for BP, which has produced millions of barrels of crude, immediately before.
"We're finding new resources that require wells in greater depths to reach deeper levels under higher pressure," said van Oort. "The rate of offshore technology development is increasing exponentially."
Improving spill response
Another speaker emphasized improvements since the blowout and massive spill. "Post-Macondo, companies came together to share resources so responses can happen more quickly," said Buford Pollett, an assistant energy law professor at the University of Tulsa. The industry specifically focused on developing technology and having enough capping stacks available to be deployed quickly, van Oort noted.
The advent of Ocean Bottom Sensor Technology produced more continuous formations in 2008 than 4 years earlier, said Kristin Wood, regional chief geologist for Shell's Deepwater North American and Brazil Exploration Group. "If you compare this to what could be shown in the 1970s, it's like night and day," she said.
It's not certain whether this briefing, and others that are planned, will lead to more sensible federal energy policies. They might increase the prospects of lawmakers and others at least having up-to-date information.
Nick Snow
NICK SNOW covered oil and gas in Washington for more than 30 years. He worked in several capacities for The Oil Daily and was founding editor of Petroleum Finance Week before joining OGJ as its Washington correspondent in September 2005 and becoming its full-time Washington editor in October 2007. He retired from OGJ in January 2020.
