Posted in Uncategorized | 5 Comments »
According to the LA Times and other reporting, the Dept. of Commerce (NOAA) 92-page draft review of California’s federally approved (1978) Coastal Management Program finds:
- A “pattern of jurisdictional and regulatory overreach.”
- “Unjustified hostility and political bias against offshore drilling opportunities, oil and gas projects broadly, and SpaceX’s launch activities.”
Among the corrective actions specified:
- Meeting with SpaceX to discuss concerns about political bias and productive next steps.
- Discussions with Sable Offshore Corp. regarding regulatory burden/overreach related to restarting offshore operations off the Santa Barbara coast.
- Issuance of an official statement (by January, per reports) pledging that California will not categorically oppose initiatives related to certain industries (e.g., oil and gas) or activities (e.g., offshore drilling).
Future federal funding for the state’s coastal management program is described as suspended “unless and until the identified deficiencies are satisfactorily addressed.” State agencies were given a response deadline (initially around mid-November 2026; extension requested).
Legal, political, and administrative fireworks are sure to follow!
Posted in California, energy policy, Offshore Energy - General | Tagged California Coastal Commission, Commerce Dept., CZMA, Federal review, NOAA, offshore oil and gas, Sable Offshore | Leave a Comment »
- Supports the farm-out process by providing potential farm-in partners clarity on the execution pathway for a future exploration campaign
- Identifies a double-digit pool of suitable available rigs all assessed against capability, timing and regional positioning
- Affirms that the key Colibri target well (406 MMbo) and the deeper-water Thunderball follow-on (603 MMbo) could be targeted in a single exploration campaign
- Identifies a Jamaica-based logistics model that combines local port infrastructure and services with specialist regional offshore services
- Outlines long-lead requirements identifying critical equipment, sourcing options and procurement timelines
UOG has also posted a video describing the existing Jamaican infrastructure:
This is all good, but UOG is barely solvent and has yet to secure a partner after years of trying. Are their terms unreasonable or are other companies less optimistic about the production potential? Decisions by the Govt of Jamaica to grant UOG multiple license extensions, the latest through 1/31/2028, are puzzling.
UOG’s stock trades well below £1 per share (currently 0.23 GBX/share) on the London Exchange.
Posted in Jamaica, Offshore Energy - General | Tagged farmout, infrastructure, Jamaica, rig study, United Oil and Gas | Leave a Comment »
Update from ‘Borr Drilling on the Prospector 5 incident offshore Gabon:
Search and rescue operations are ongoing for the five individuals who remain unaccounted for. The Company is in contact with the families of the missing personnel.
Posted in accidents, drilling | Tagged 5 missing, Borr Drilling, jackup rig, Prospector 5, punch-through | Leave a Comment »
Borr Drilling confirmed that, at 20:37 local time on October 24, 2026, the Prospector 5 jack-up drilling rig collapsed and sank while conducting jacking operations offshore Gabon. The rig wass contracted to support BW Energy’s drilling operations.
Preliminary information indicates that the rig experienced a punch-through event during preload activities, resulting in loss of stability and the subsequent sinking of the rig.
At the time of the incident, there were 115 personnel onboard the rig. Five individuals remain unaccounted for, with search and rescue operations ongoing.
Bruno Morand CEO of Borr Drilling: “We are deeply concerned for those who remain unaccounted for and everyone affected by this incident. Our immediate priority is supporting the ongoing search and rescue efforts and the welfare of all personnel involved.”
Example of a jackup punch through:
Posted in accidents, drilling, Offshore Energy - General | Tagged 5 missing, Borr Drilling, Gabon, jack-up rig, Prospector 5, punch-through, rig collapse | Leave a Comment »
Chevron is marketing its share in several Gulf of Mexico facilities, including Petronius, the 2100′ compliant tower which was initially installed by Texaco in 2000.
Petronius and Baldpate (supportively named for those of us who are follicly challenged 😉) are the Gulf’s only compliant towers – freestanding structures that sway up to 2% of their height to safely absorb ocean forces.
Also on the market are Chevron’s interest in Tubular Bells, a floating spar platform in 4300′ of water, and Llano, a subsea development tied back to Shell’s Auger tension leg platform.
Posted in Gulf of Mexico, Offshore Energy - General | Tagged Baldpate, Chevron, compliant tower, for sale, Hess, Llano, Petronius, Tubular Bells | 2 Comments »
Posted in energy policy, Gulf of Mexico, Offshore Energy - General | Tagged Bid Evaluation Results, Gulf of America, Lease Sale BBG3 | Leave a Comment »
The diligent folks at Scotland Against Spin (SAS) have updated their turbine incident data through Sept. 2026. Their latest summary is attached, and their detailed historical table (347 pages) is linked.
The SAS data indicate that the number of wind turbine incidents has risen sharply in recent years (see chart below). The increased number of turbines worldwide and the inclusion of SafetyOn data (from 2020 on) for UK onshore wind facilities contributed to the sharp increase. Nonetheless, the growing number of incidents is disconcerting, as is the absence of comprehensive industry and government summaries and reports.
SAS has records of 274 fatalities from 195 fatal incidents. 67 of those fatal incidents have been since 2016.
SAS acknowledges that their list, which is dependent on publicly available reports, is merely the “tip of the iceberg.” For example, their list does not include the June 2, 2025, Empire Wind project fatality.
Unsurprisingly, SAS data (table below) show that blade failure and fire are the most common incident types. We previously reported on a Windpower article suggesting an average of 3800 blade failures per year. Presumably, “routine” blade failures, are not classified as incidents.
| 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 as of 9/30 | |
| blade failure | 21 | 19 | 28 | 25 | 32 | 18 | 24 | 15 | 23 | 17 | 12 |
| fire | 28 | 26 | 27 | 25 | 25 | 21 | 19 | 17 | 23 | 16 | 15 |
A high priority for wind industry regulators in the US and internationally should be establishing a consistent wind energy incident reporting regime and making the data available to the public in a timely and organized manner.
Posted in accidents, Wind Energy | Tagged blade failures, Empire Wind, fires, Scotland Against Spin, Vineyard Wind, wind turbine incidents | Leave a Comment »
- The UK government has approved extraction from the Jackdaw gas field in the North Sea
- Jackdaw “will start to supply gas to British homes and businesses from as early as the end of this month, helping heat millions of homes and protecting hundreds of jobs”
- Chancellor John Healey says a new “Energy Wealth Fund”, using tax revenue from oil and gas extraction, will invest in “green transition” (but of course!😉🙃)
- What about Rosebank?
Posted in energy policy, natural gas, Offshore Energy - General, UK | Tagged Govt approval, Jackdaw field, Rosebank field, UK energy policy | Leave a Comment »
Final Leasing Notice is attached.
- Two lease areas for bid as identified in the map above
- Sale date: Thursday, November 19, 2026
- 20 year primary lease term
- Oral auction bidding to be livestreamed at boem.gov
- Minimum Bonus Bid Amount: $3,000,000 for each lease area
- Royalty: 2% on all mineral production during the first five years of production, 5% on production in years 6+
- Rental rates:
Yesterday, EarthJustice, representing a council of matai (chiefs or leaders) from American Samoa’s Manu‘a Islands, filed a lawsuit in federal court in Hawaii seeking to block the lease sale.
Posted in deep sea mining, energy policy, Offshore Energy - General | Tagged 11/19/2026, American Samoa, bonus, Final Notice, lease terms, OCS Minerals Lease Sale, royalty | Leave a Comment »
Capt. David Bacon is a boating safety consultant and expert witness, with a background in high-tech industries and charter boat ownership and operation. He teaches classes for Santa Barbara City College and, with a lifelong interest in wildlife, writes outdoors columns for Noozhawk and other publications.
Excerpts from Capt. David Bacon’s Noozhawk column:
- I believe those oil rigs offshore create, attract and sustain more life than all of our radical enviro orgs crying, “The sky is falling and the world is being destroyed, so send us your money” can ever hope to accomplish.
- Our ocean and seagoing critters lost big-time when the four inshore rigs off Padero Lane and Carpinteria were removed some years back. They were taken down to the ground, and all that was left were mounds of mussel shells.
- Let’s not repeat that massive forced die-off by removing any more oil rigs.
- There was argument about whether our oil rigs attracted or produced life. That argument is long over. They do both.
- The structure above the waterline serves pinnipeds and birds, which feed on the life below. Our rigs support a wide-ranging variety of sea life.
- When I look at the rigs from a close-up and personal perspective while I fish near them, I see the obvious. They are massive life generators and supporters, leading me to call them our Rigs of Life.
- We also need to keep our oil rig structures even after we decommission them, because to have abundant sea life, we need to create and maintain more supporting habitat.
For those of us who agree with the Captain that these structures have great value to society, the main questions are:
- How do we maintain valuable offshore structures after the production of oil and gas ceases?
- Who bears responsibility for their ultimate decommissioning? Is there a liability regime in place for any structure that remains?
- Who manages the post-production uses of the platform which could include oceanographic, biological, and alternative energy research, national security and space applications, communications, weather observations, and much more?
- Is there a business plan that works for the companies responsible for decommissioning and platform users, while also protecting taxpayers from liabilities?
One approach would be for the lessees responsible for decommissioning to retain that obligation and continue to maintain the structures in accordance with Federal regulations. This assumes the financial benefits from deferring decommissioning are sufficient to justify such a commitment. This could be a flawed assumption in some (most?) cases.
Alternatively, for companies that would prefer to be relieved of decommissioning obligations, John Smith’s proposal would allow qualified 3rd parties to accept title and liability for the structures. A company, consortium, nonprofit, or entrepreneur could, for a fee, acquire the structures and obtain insurance or other financial protection in accordance with their business plan.
The best way to preserve the reef environment is to extend the life of the platform for post-production activities. Can we make this work?
Posted in California, decommissioning, Gulf of Mexico, Offshore Energy - General | Tagged alternative uses, Capt. David Bacon, decommissioning, extending platform life, platform ecology, rigs to reefs, Santa Barbara Channel | Leave a Comment »
