What?
The blowout in the Gulf of Mexico could have been prevented if the last-line of defence—the blind shear ram on the blowout preventer, located at the well head on the ocean floor—had activated and crushed the drill pipe. Given the importance of this equipment, and the evident dangers of relying on a single device, we urge the HSE to consider prescribing specifically that blowout preventers on the UK Continental Shelf should have two blind shear rams.
Comments:
- The UK government should NOT be commenting on the BOP failure until the US government has completed its forensic testing and investigation.
- The Committee has apparently not paid any attention to the testimony on the BOP issues or the other BOP information that has surfaced. Have they not seen the comments from BP and Transocean or the videos shot on the Q4000?
- Would it have been appropriate for the US government to publish a report on Piper Alpha before Lord Cullen had completed his review?
Bud's Offshore Energy (BOE) 
With my family background……born and brought up about 108 miles from Westminster….I think I am allowed a comment.
I have (quickly) looked at this report and was struck by how the direction seemed to be overly swayed by the Bly report (this is detailed but fails to include some issues) and (indeed) the testimony of Tony Hayward. This was possibly the reason for the focus on the BOP shear rams.
These are indeed an area for much further thought, but it would be appropriate to wait for the results from the ongoing DNV investigation before taking the “quick fix” .
By contrast, I consider that the Presidential Commission has (so far – Chapter 4) provided a much more balanced answer. I put this down to some of the “heavy hitters” such as Steve Lewis and Charlie Williams who very much understand what was going on on that tragic night.