Fire extinguished from Energy XXI platform offshore Louisiana

    Jan. 23, 2015
    A fire has been extinguished from a producing, unmanned platform in the Gulf of Mexico following damage that was possibly caused by a vessel, the US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) reported on Jan. 23.
    Jan23st27iaplatform1

    A fire has been extinguished from a producing, unmanned platform in the Gulf of Mexico following damage that was possibly caused by a vessel, the US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) reported on Jan. 23.

    The ST 27 IA platform, struck at 4:30 a.m., lies in 50 ft of water on South Timbalier Block 27, 5 miles south of Port Fourchon, La.

    Jan23st27iaplatform1

    Operator Energy XXI GOM LLC said gas bubbles are intermittently rising to the surface as a result of the damage, but no other pollution has been observed. Three wells were producing at the time of the incident.

    An emergency shutdown was successfully performed and production has been shut-in, said BSEE, which, along with Energy XXI, will have personnel at the scene to determine the extent of the damage, weather permitting. BSEE is providing oversight to the operator’s response efforts.

    The incident will be investigated by both BSEE and the US Coast Guard.

    Energy XXI in 2014 became the largest public independent on the gulf shelf following its $2.3-billion merger with EPL Oil & Gas Inc. (OGJ Online, Mar. 12, 2014).

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