“Despite our previously unified stance, some Members of our conference now feel compelled to defend wind and biofuel credits, advocate for carbon capture and hydrogen subsidies, or protect solar and electric vehicle giveaways. Keeping even one of these subsidies opens the door to retaining all eight. How do we retain some of these credits and not operate in hypocrisy?The longstanding Republican position has been to allow the market to determine energy production. If every faction continues to defend their favored subsidies, we risk preserving the entire IRA because no clearly defined principle will dictate what is kept and what is culled.“
The following message is from Jason Mathews – petroleum engineer, football coach, proud father, and outstanding offshore safety leader.
Happy Easter – BSEE Family and Friends
The explosion on the Deepwater Horizon oil rig occurred on April 20, 2010, at approximately 9:45 p.m. CDT. Shortly after the initial explosion, a series of further explosions and a firestorm engulfed the platform that forever changed our industry and eleven families.
This past week, I was in Orlando with my family attending an International Cheer event – All Star World Championship. As I was sitting there, I noticed a young athlete with a date written on her shoes, and she touched the date as she walked back with her team. My assumption was it was something to inspire her.
It quickly reminded me of a young man by the name of Shane Roshto. At only 22 years young, he was a victim of the Deepwater Horizon explosion, and he had written the date of his wedding and his son’s birthday on the inside of his hard hat. Those dates served as reminders of the important people and events in his life while working on the rig miles away from those who meant the most to him.
On Wednesday evening, they brought the top ten teams at the cheer competition onto the stage and called out each finalist on the stage until there were three left, and my daughter’s team was still remaining. While those girls were on stage, I thought back on the countless hours her coaches pushed her and always requested more from them because they had a collective goal to win Nationals and Worlds, and then they called the third-place finisher. It seemed like forever before they called the second-place finisher, but when they did, I got to witness athletes, coaches and families reach something they had put everything into since they began cheer. A date LA Spirit – Fame will never forget – April 16th, and only four days from a day we will never forget – April 20th.
At the conclusion of the day after taking everything in and calming down, I sent this message to the coaches of my daughter’s team – “Coaches thanks for “living your legacy” with our girls at LA Spirit. Every one of your goals, expectations, and coaching styles foster a meaningful life well beyond cheer that leaves a positive impact on our girls. All too often, our girls are told what they can and can’t do with their schedules, their abilities, or their choices. Y’all showed them they can do whatever they set their mind to if they want it bad enough and are willing to make sacrifices for it. As a parent, thank you for making positive memories and experiences that have a ripple effect and continue to inspire our girls for years to come.”
Although the two events have nothing in common (one being a tragedy and one being a highlight), they both drive individuals to live their legacies. At BSEE, all of us (not just inspectors and engineers) have an awesome responsibility to live our legacy in the oil and gas industry by actively shaping our life’s story and influence by focusing on our values, actions, and contributions to those around us (and those who work offshore).
Whether you have days like April 20th or April 16th, always “Live Your Legacy.”
In a peer reviewed paper, AI (Grok-3) debunks the man-made climate crisis narrative.
Doug Burgum: Hydraulic fracturing technology is “one of the reasons why the U.S. shale revolution is a miracle. But that miracle keeps on getting better and better. It’s the thing that has literally turned around the economy.” Posted here 15 years ago: Natural Gas Bonanza – Why Aren’t We Celebrating?
Every year since 1978, Safety in Seas Awards have been presented at NOIA’s Annual Meeting. This is the world’s oldest, and in my opinion, most prestigious safety award program for the offshore energy industry.
Last week NOIA presented the Safety Practices Award to Proceanic and the Culture of Safety Award to Seacor Marine. These comments from NOIA President Erik Milito sum up the selections nicely:
“The Safety in Seas awards spotlight an industry-wide truth: safety isn’t just a priority—it’s the heartbeat of what we do. SEACOR Marine and Proceanic exemplify this ethos with extraordinary resolve. SEACOR’s relentless safety culture, driven by innovative tools and a zero-incident vision, and Proceanic’s pioneering Mini-ROV inspections, safeguarding lives and assets with remarkable precision, reflect the best of our collective mission. Their leadership amplifies a broader tide of excellence, where every company, every worker, and every breakthrough pushes us toward a safer, stronger offshore future. We honor them, and we extend our deepest gratitude to all entrants—each one a vital contributor to a safer, more resilient offshore industry.”
As a Safety in Seas judge for many years, I can assure you that the selections are based solely on the award criteria and supporting data, and that the process is free from interference or campaigning. As is normally the case, there were many outstanding nominations.
I recommend that you review NOIA’s announcement for more information. You may also want to contact the companies directly to learn more about their safety programs. Industry adaptability is one of the selection criteria for both awards.
clockwise from the bottom left: Kim Coffman, Harold Syms, Gig Kocher, Bud, Bob LaBelle, Doug Siltor, Walter Johnson, Lennis Montague, Carol Hartgen, Judy Wilson, John Cushing, Kevin Spaner, Kelly Griggs. Not pictured: Norm Weaver and Jeri Bryant
Great people who were dedicated to the OCS program’s safety, environmental, and resource management missions! Much wisdom was shared! 😉
The northeast coast of the United States is perhaps the best understood example of an offshore freshwater system, and multiple studies have been undertaken to determine the origin and volume of offshore freshwater. Coring and sampling the subseafloor offshore Massachusetts, USA, will provide data for understanding the processes driving emplacement of freshwater lenses offshore New England and elsewhere globally, and lead to a better understanding of this worldwide hydrogeological phenomenon. This is essential for protection and sustainable management of offshore freshwater systems and for better understanding biogeochemical and elemental cycling in continental shelf environments.
With regard to the potential freshwater resources (from the Nantucket Current):
“I’m just excited about the science, and that finally, after all these years, someone’s trying to get the truth,” said Nantucket Water Department director Mark Willett. “Computers predicted it. Everybody thinks it’s there. These guys are the first ones in the world who are going to go drill a hole and prove it.”
Willett and (lead scientist Brandon) Dugan are particularly intrigued by the possibility that the offshore freshwater aquifer could be connected to a lower, untapped aquifer beneath Nantucket that Willett calls “ancient glacier lake Nantucket.”
“If it is connected and it’s young water that’s being recharged actively today, that’s really exciting, because it’s a renewable source,” Dugan said.
The liftboat Robert will drill 3 wells to depths of 300-400 feet between May 1 and August 32.
China plans to build an “Offshore Space Station”2,000 meters below the ocean surface in the South China Sea. The plan is to complete the station, which will accommodate 6 scientists, by 2030.
This is by far the deepest water for which a subsea human habitat has been proposed. By comparison, the planned Proteus (Fabien Cousteau) underwater station will be in just 20 meters of water off the northeast coast of Curaçao. A Sentinel/UK habitat is planned for depths up to 200 meters in the Mediterranean.
The primary focus of the deepwater South China Sea facility will reportedly be the study of deepwater seep ecosystems which are rich in marine life and deposits of methane hydrates. Hydrates are an energy resource that has much potential. However, because of the risk of uncontrolled methane releases and seafloor instability, there is limited support for the production of hydrate methane.
A deepwater science station near hydrates and methane seeps would be a dangerous operating environment given the potential for methane blowouts and cratering caused by destabilized hydrates. Given that nearly all of the research could be conducted safer and cheaper with Autonomous Underwater Vehichles (AUVs) and advanced robotics, the scientific value of a deepwater station seems questionable.
The offshore oil and gas industry considered subsea habitats in the 1970s but has since abandoned the idea. Lockheed designed a one atmosphere seafloor chamber (diagram below) that was installed in the Gulf in 1972 at a water depth of 375 ft.
Dry chamber well and production systems lost favor because of concerns about flooding, high costs, and safety risks associated with transporting workers to the chambers and placing them in close proximity to “live” wells and production equipment.
Perhaps the main drivers for China’s deepwater “space station” are geopolitical. Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Brunei reject Beijing’s claims of sovereignty and each claim parts of the South China Sea (see map below).
By establishing a seafloor community in a strategic location, China could strengthen its highly questionable claim to the entire South China Sea. China would also have reason to increase Navy vessel activity in disputed waters to support and defend their subsea community.
This will be a project to watch if it actually goes forward.
In light of the recent NASA/SpaceX advances in rocketry, a manned mission to Mars seems inevitable, perhaps within the next 5 years. See the SpaceX Mars landing video below.
While the space program generates more media buzz given the sci-fi appeal, the achievements of the offshore oil and gas industry are similarly impressive. The Gulf of America has its own Mars, a massive deepwater project that has been ongoing and expanding for 30 years, and may ultimately produce more than 1 billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe).
Like a mission to Mars, the successful development of deepwater oil and gas resources is a technical marvel that requires:
Identifying prospects deep beneath the seafloor using advanced subsurface imaging capabilities.
Drilling exploratory wells from floating rigs, using advanced stationkeeping systems that maintain a precise location on the water surface.
Drilling deep beneath the seafloor while transmitting real-time geologic, temperature, and pressure data to the rig and distant onshore locations.
Ensuring well integrity by installing and cementing multiple strings of protective casing.
Processing production at buoyant surface facilities designed to withstand worst case storm conditions.
Connecting clusters of subsea wells to a host surface facility that may be many miles away.
Increasing ultimate recovery with reservoir engineering studies and advanced well completion practices.
Life on the planet Mars will be dependent on technology developed for the offshore Mars and other deepwater projects.
Bud's Offshore Energy (BOE) 