Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category
Now that the sleeping air traffic controller problem at Reagan National (and elsewhere) has been addressed…
Posted in Uncategorized on April 17, 2011| 6 Comments »
Rigs to Retirement?
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged offshore drilling, old rigs, rigs-to-reefs on April 2, 2011| 1 Comment »
Growing demand for new offshore oil rigs, partly driven by the Gulf of Mexico spill last year, has led to a spurt of building in shipyards and raised tough questions about what to do with the old rigs. Reuters
What? Have they not looked at the Rigs-to-Reefs+++ page™ (a BOE exclusive)?
“At a certain point it just doesn’t make any sense to upgrade them or put another 5-10 million bucks into them,” said John Tasdemir, an analyst at Canaccord Genuity. “Better just to scrap them and either start over, or just do something else.”
Major Barents Sea Discovery
Posted in Uncategorized on April 1, 2011| Leave a Comment »
Statoil, along with partners Eni Norway and Petoro, has made a significant oil discovery on the Skrugard prospect in the Barents Sea. The breakthrough discovery is one of the most important finds on the Norwegian continental shelf in the last decade. Statoil announcement
Take a break and kick the ball around!
Posted in Uncategorized on March 28, 2011| 2 Comments »
More on “Old Harry” (love the name!)
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged Canada, Newfoundland, Old Harry, Quebec on March 28, 2011| Leave a Comment »
Odd Finnestad has provided some good background information on the Old Harry prospect.
“Old Harry is described as “the largest known undrilled marine structure in Canada”, with twice the potential of the Hibernia field off Newfoundland (up to 2-billion barrels of recoverable oil), or and three times the potential of the Sable Island gas field off the coast of Nova Scotia.” polemincandparadise.com
Courtroom Humor
Posted in Uncategorized on March 28, 2011| Leave a Comment »
Microbes and Oil Spills
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged American Academy of Microbiology, microbes, oil spill on March 27, 2011| Leave a Comment »
Thinking deep; is it time for seafloor drilling?
Posted in drilling, offshore, Offshore Energy - General, Uncategorized, tagged automated drilling, Deepwater, offshore drilling, Seabed Rig on March 22, 2011| 1 Comment »
from SeabedRig.com
Advances in drilling technology tend to be evolutionary, not revolutionary. Floating rigs, dynamic positioning, top-drive systems, measurement-while-drilling, automated rig floors, and other important advances were logical next steps, not radical makeovers.
Many of us have long been fascinated by the possibility of locating drilling equipment on the seafloor, particularly for deepwater wells. Why operate from a massive floating vessel that requires a sophisticated stationkeeping system and a long riser to connect to the wellhead? Why link surface personnel to seafloor risks? Why increase the complexity of balancing well pressures (without fracturing formations) by adding thousands of feet to the mud column? Why heave and roll on the surface when you can operate from the seafloor?
It’s not that easy, of course, and there are many questions and issues. While fully automated drilling systems are no longer a reach, what about reliability and repairs? How will casing be set and cemented? How will downhole measurements be transmitted to the control center? Cuttings samples? Coring? Well testing? The list of challenges is daunting.
At least one company, Seabed Rig, is committed to developing and demonstrating seafloor drilling technology. Earlier this month, Seabed Rig reached agreement with NASA to create the first autonomous drilling rig. While a lot of work remains, Seabed Rig and other pioneering companies are applauded for their innovative thinking and willingness to challenge conventional practices and wisdom.
Kudos to the Coast Guard and responsible journalists
Posted in Uncategorized, tagged Coast Guard, Gulf of Mexico, oil sheen on March 21, 2011| Leave a Comment »
Kudos to:
- The US Coast Guard for promptly analyzing the Gulf of Mexico sheen that was reported over the weekend and determining that it was not associated with offshore oil and gas production.
- The many news organizations and journalists who ignored the irresponsible speculation, and waited for the Coast Guard to complete its investigation.
Bud's Offshore Energy (BOE) 