Per our 10/20/2021 post about this Saudi recreation venture, below is a nice promotional video. This greatly exceeds what we had envisioned many years ago!
Archive for the ‘rigs-to-reefs’ Category
Cool promo for “The Rig”
Posted in decommissioning, rigs-to-reefs, Uncategorized, tagged rigs-to-recreation, rigs-to-resorts, rigs-to-rides, rigs-to-roar, Saudi Arabia on January 9, 2022| Leave a Comment »
Rigs to Roe (Redfish, Rockfish)!
Posted in decommissioning, energy policy, Gulf of Mexico, Offshore Energy - General, rigs-to-reefs, tagged aquaculture, GORI, Innovasea, rigs-to-reefs, rigs-to-roe on December 22, 2021| Leave a Comment »
An old offshore platform in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico is set to be converted into a working fish farm, creating a blueprint for future aquaculture re-use projects and providing repurposing options for old oil and gas assets.
offshore-energy.biz
Congratulations to the Gulf Offshore Research Institute (GORI) and Innovasea on their plans to transform an offshore Texas gas platform into a working fish farm.
For the complete list of alternative uses for offshore oil and gas platforms, see our Rigs-to-Reefs+++ page.
California Decommissioning: old disputes prevent common sense solutions
Posted in California, decommissioning, energy policy, rigs-to-reefs, tagged California, decommissioning, rigs to reefs on November 30, 2021| Leave a Comment »
Despite scientific support, California’s “rigs to reefs” program has made little progress. Comments in yesterday’s LA Times article help explain why:
Fed by concerns from some environmental advocates and a skepticism about the motives of California’s billion-dollar oil industry, the Rigs to Reefs program that passed in 2010 was so complicated by political compromise that the permitting process became almost unworkable, (State Sen.) Hertzberg said.
Not a single oil company has applied in the history of the program, according to the State Lands Commission, which has jurisdiction over state waters.
LA Times
“Oil companies want a clear path to compliance,” he said. “They’re operating in many cases at a loss, but it’s cheaper to operate at a loss than it is to face millions for decommissioning.”
Gary Brown, Orange County Coastkeeper
Jerry Schubel on the benefits of rigs-to-reefs programs
Posted in California, decommissioning, energy policy, Offshore Energy - General, rigs-to-reefs, tagged California, decommissioning, Jerry Schubel, rigs-to-reefs on November 2, 2021| Leave a Comment »
Veteran marine science advocate Jerry Schubel, former president of Long Beach’s Aquarium of the Pacific, is among those pushing for offshore oil platforms to be transformed for new ocean uses. He points out that the underwater portion of the structures already are a boon to marine life.
“They have enormous value as ecosystems because of the life that has grown on and around them,” he said.
He points out that other states have rigs-to-reefs programs — and California does as well, though it needs funding before it can function. Once the ball gets rolling, oil companies could be tapped to cover costs with fees drawn from the money they would save by not having to haul dismantled rigs ashore. Schubel estimated that turning platforms into reefs could cut decommissioning costs in half.
But Schubel says artificial reefs should be just the beginning. How about fish farms? Research labs? Windmills? Hotels for divers?
“The uses,” he said, “are limited only by our imagination.”
Orange County Register
Well said Dr. Schubel! For a full list of alternative uses for offshore platforms see the official Rigs-to-Reefs+++ page.
Bud's Offshore Energy (BOE) 