Q. (Mr. Berger, Counsel for the Inquiry): Have you become aware through your experience in the industry that problems with cementing are a leading factor in the cause of blowouts?
A. (Mr. Doeg, Halliburton): No, I haven’t.
Good question and a surprising response from the Halliburton employee who was the cementing contractor when the 9 5/8″ casing was set. Mr. Doeg has 20 years of cementing experience. What do they discuss at training sessions and safety meetings?
Q. (Mr. Berger): Were you aware that the well you were working on on 7 March last year had entered the reservoir?
A. (Mr. Doeg): No, I wasn’t.
Q. (Mr. Berger): You’ve only become aware that it entered the reservoir subsequently; is that right?
A. (Mr. Doeg): Correct.
Stunning! Keep in mind that this was a long 9 5/8″ string being cemented through an extended horizontal section.
Food for thought (In questioning Mr. Doeg, Mr. Berger raised the possibility of compatibility issues between the Weatherford float collar and the Halliburton plugs):
Q. When you have a float collar and a bottom plug manufactured by different companies, can issues arise about their compatibility?
A. They can, yes.
Q. What sorts of issues can arise?
A. When it comes to drilling out, they generally run non-rotating plugs to prevent that, and in this case they didn’t run non-rotating plugs; they ran an additional piece of equipment to prevent them from rotating.
Q. What about when seating the bottom plug in the float collar – can issues arise where the two parts are manufactured by different companies?
A. Normally not, but with this additional piece of equipment, possibly.
Bud's Offshore Energy (BOE) 
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