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Brian Wilson, the Beach Boys, James Watt, Hawthorne High, and the OCS oil and gas program

June 13, 2025 by offshoreenergy

“the greatest song ever written” ~ Paul McCartney

Brian Wilson, the music genius who passed away this week, was indirectly connected (sort of) to the OCS oil and gas program.

In 1983, Secretary of the Interior James Watt, whose overzealous approach to offshore oil and gas leasing galvanized opposition, bizarrely banned the Beach Boys from performing at the National Mall 4th of July concert. This stunned Nancy Reagan and almost everyone else in Washington. The Washington Post reported, “a ban on apple pie couldn’t have brought a stronger reaction.”

Congressman George Miller, who later restored the OCS civil penalties program, dropped the names of Beach Boys songs while commenting on the House floor:

‘I was sitting ‘in my room’ ‘all summer long’ saying, “‘Do you remem- ber,’ Mr. Watt, ‘Do you remember’ those ‘Good Vibrations’ from the ‘Fourth of July’ when all we did was ‘dance, dance, dance,’ ‘all summer long’ to the Beach Boys in the ‘spirit of Americas?”” Miller said according to Congressional records. “But ‘help me, Ronald, help, help me Ronald,’ ‘don’t let him run wild.’ And if you cannot do it alone, get help from ‘Barbara Ann.'”

The White House gave Watt a plaster foot with a hole as a symbolic gesture of his mistake. The Beach Boys returned to the National Mall the following, playing in front of a crowd of more than half a million people.

The Beach Boys had another indirect connection to the OCS program in that they attended Hawthorne High with Glenn Shackell, one of our top engineers. Glenn served in Vietnam, studied petroleum engineering at USC, and had an outstanding career in our Pacific Region office. He has an encyclopedic knowledge of oil and gas operations in the Pacific.

Here is a video of Brian Wilson returning to Hawthorne High:

Posted in energy policy, Offshore Energy - General, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

BSEE inspections identify safety device bypass management issues

June 12, 2025 by offshoreenergy

As explained in the attached Safety Alert, BSEE’s risk-based inspection program has identified deficiencies in safety device bypass practices including:

  • inadequate documentation
  • inoperative data history software
  • bypassing more devices than is necessary
  • bypassing devices for longer than necessary
  • missing audit documentation
  • mistakenly bypassing the entire safety system during production

The regulations restricting the bypassing of safety devices are core elements of OCS regulatory and operator management programs. Because they are critical to process safety, these requirements are widely supported and strictly enforced.

BSEE Safety Alert 501-BSEE Identifies Bypassed Safety Device DeficienciesDownload

Posted in accidents, Gulf of Mexico, Offshore Energy - General, Regulation | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

“Almost Heaven” for lateral drilling!

June 11, 2025 by offshoreenergy

“Country roads” take us to Moundsville, West Virginia where new records were set drilling a “postcard well.”

In addition to the records noted in the picture, these impressive company marks were achieved:

  • 24-hour footage record: 12,370 feet
  • daily footage record: 2,774 feet/day

The record US offshore lateral well is in the Santa Ynez Unit, which has been much discussed on this blog and elsewhere in light of Sable Offshore’s efforts to resume production. In 2010, Exxon drilled a well with a horizontal reach of 6 miles from Platform Heritage into the Sacate field (see the diagrams below).

The world’s longest horizontal reach well appears to be the O-14 well drilled by the Sakhalin-1 Consortium in the Sea of Okhotsk, Russia, in April 2015. This well had a horizontal reach of 14,129 meters (46,358 feet).

ADNOC, the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, has the world record (2022) for the longest well (50,000′) in the Upper Zakum field. However, no horizontal reach distance is provided, so it is assumed that the Sakhalin well had the longer reach.

Artificial islands at Adnoc’s Upper Zakum field.Photo: Adnoc

Posted in California, drilling, energy policy, Offshore Energy - General, Russia, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Congratulations Walter Cruickshank!

June 10, 2025 by offshoreenergy

Congratulations to Walter Cruickshank on his retirement from the U.S. Dept. of the Interior!

Walter’s policy acumen, in depth understanding of the offshore program, and balanced perspective on energy development earned him the respect of the political leadership from both parties, a rare achievement. As a result, Walter served more time as Director and Deputy Director of both the Minerals Management Service and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management than any other individual. He also served as Acting Secretary of the Interior during the latest transition, a first for a career offshore program employee.

Walter earned a Bachelor of Arts in Geological Sciences from Cornell University and a Doctorate in Mineral Economics from the Pennsylvania State University (We Are!). Although his Federal career spanned more than 40 years, he has rather remarkably retained his intellect and sanity! 😉

Best wishes to Walter going forward. I hope he finds time to root for his Harwich Mariners in the Cape Cod Baseball League!

Consistent with the proud tradition of the OCS program, I am posting the masterpiece “Rig at Sunset” in Walter’s honor.

“Rig at Sunset” was painted 50 years ago by a US Geological Survey (USGS) employee who chose to remain anonymous. The masterpiece was presented to USGS (later MMS) engineers and scientists who had made important contributions to the offshore oil and gas program. Understandably, the intended recipients were so humbled by the magnificence of the painting that they could not accept it. As the painting grew in value and international prominence, framed copies were presented to retirees and the original painting was kept at a secure, undisclosed location. More on the painting’s important symbolism at a later date. 😉

Posted in energy policy, Offshore Energy - General, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Rep. Chris Smith: “Radar interference alone enough to pull the plug on‘extremely dangerous’ Empire Wind project”

June 9, 2025 by offshoreenergy

Radar interference is one of the key issues in the law suit against the Empire Wind project. Congressman Smith’s press release (attached) focuses on that issue.

Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ)_ Radar interference alone enough to pull the plug on ‘extremely dangerous’ Empire Wind project _ U.S. RepresentativeDownload

Posted in energy policy, Offshore Wind | Tagged , , , | Leave a Comment »

In May 2024 a tugboat capsized while towing a platform in the Gulf. Here’s the NTSB report.

June 9, 2025 by offshoreenergy

Attached is the full NTSB report. Here’s what happened:

  • In May 2024, the Baylor J. Tregre tugboat was towing a platform on the barge MARMAC 27 to Brazos Block 538 in the Gulf of America.
  • The tug capsized in stormy conditions.
  • The 4 crew members were rescued by the Coast Guard.
  • The NTSB determined that the probable cause of the capsizing was “the mate’s inability to maneuver the tow into the wind due to the overwhelming towline force generated by the towed barge during the sudden onset of severe weather, resulting in unrecoverable heeling.”

Comments:

  • Who knew? When a tugboat capsizes while towing a platform on a barge, endangering the crew, that’s a very serious incident. Yet there was no public announcement by the companies involved or the Coast Guard, and there was no media coverage following the incident (May 2024). The NTSB docket includes only the final investigation report.
  • The NTSB report says a production platform was being towed, but it was actually a gas transmission platform owned by Transco Gas Pipe Line Co. There is no production in Brazos Area Block 538, an unleased block.
  • Here and here are bits of information on the Transco’s Brazos Area 538 Platform modification project.
  • Per a 2007 article, Williams’ Seahawk gathering system, which collects deepwater gas production, connects at Brazos Block 538 with a pipeline that transports gas to the Transco processing plant in Markham, TX (see map below).
  • The NTSB report lacks context needed to understand the planning process, organizational factors, and timing/urgency of the project.
  • The NTSB report attributes the failure to the mate’s inability to respond to the weather conditions, but provides no information on the safety management system, risk assessment, job safety job planning process, crew training, and other project management factors.
  • Two of the crew members are suing Trinity Tugs alleging that they suffered personal injuries resulting from the negligence of Trinity and the unseaworthiness of the M/V BAYLOR J. TREGRE.
Deepwater gas gathering system connects with Brazos 538 transmission platform at the “Y” in the center of the screen.
MIR2521Download

Posted in accidents, Gulf of Mexico, natural gas, Offshore Energy - General, pipelines | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Comments on the operator responsibility and unlimited liability provisions of Guyana’s Oil Spill Bill

June 6, 2025 by offshoreenergy

Guyana’s Oil Spill Bill (attached) has much in common with the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 that we implemented for US offshore faciities and the International Convention on Oil Pollution Preparedness, Response and Co-operation that I attended in 1990. A couple of issues warrant highlighting:

Operator/licensee responsibility:The definitions correctly establish the operator or license holder as the responsible party. This means that in the event of a well blowout while drilling from a mobile drilling unit, the licensee/operator would be the responsible party. This aligns with the “operator responsibility” mantra that is fundamental to the US offshore program. Drilling and other contractors are managed by the operator and are the operator’s responsibility.

Unlimited liability: The liability section (Part VI) establishes an unlimited liability standard for the responsible party. As previously discussed in more detail, this is a daunting, open-ended obligation that would trouble permittees in any industry. The unlimited liability provision could preclude responsible independent operators, including Guyanese companies, from seeking licenses.

The unlimited liability standard (par. 17) is qualified with a provision (pasted below) that also favors major international companies.

The unlimited liability provision therefore does not seem to apply to parent companies idemnifying a project. This was a point of contention during the parliamentary debate. The Kaieteur News delves into the issue and is not entirely convinced by the Government’s defense. Their article closes as follows:

It is important to note that stakeholders have argued that since ExxonMobil Guyana Limited (the responsible party) does not have adequate assets, the burden of oil spill-related costs could be left on Guyana, especially in the absence of unlimited coverage from the parent company. These and other “flaws” have prompted Guyanese to urge President Irfaan Ali not to assent to the Bill, passed in the National Assembly on May 16, 2025. Be that as it may, the Ministry maintained that the “robust statutory framework now established protects Guyana and its people.”

Oil-Spill-Bill-2025Download

Posted in Guyana, oil spill response, Regulation, well control incidents | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Norway named in Empire Wind complaint! Another first for the US OCS program.

June 5, 2025 by offshoreenergy

Protect Our Coast – NJ graphic

Along with other charges, the attached complaint asserts that awarding a wind lease to Norway’s Equinor, violates the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA):

  1. As an agency or instrumentality of Norway, Equinor cannot receive a lease on the Outer Continental Shelf for offshore wind turbine development or generation of electric power.

While other elements of the complaint appear to have merit, the charge against Norway does not. Here’s why:

  • US subsidiaries of foreign companies have long held leases under the OCS Lands Act.
  • Equinor US Wind is the US subsidiary holding the wind lease.
  • Equinor USA E&P holds interests in OCS oil and gas leases in the Gulf of America. BOEM credits 548,389 barrels of oil production to Equinor for 2023.
  • Chinese state-owned CNOOC has been an oil and gas lessee in the Gulf of America.
  • US subsidiaries of Shell and BP, both foreign corporations, are the top 2 producers in the Gulf. Although not government owned, there is nothing in OCSLA that distinguishes between US subsidiaries of private and govt owned companies. Woodside (Australia) and Eni (Italy) are also important Gulf producers.

The plaintiffs second count (excerpt below) seems to have more merit. The bulk of the filing pertains to this count.

  1. BOEM never completed its “necessary review”, see Stop Work Order, April 16, 2025, and, instead, reinstated the Empire Wind work permit on May 19, 2025 without any explanation or finding, stating as follows:
    On April 16, 2025, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management issued a Director’s Order to Empire Offshore Wind LLC to halt all ongoing activities related to the Empire Wind Project on the outer continental shelf. That Order is hereby amended to lift the halt on activities during the ongoing review.

The complaint goes on to discuss the reasons why the plaintiffs believe the review was indeed necessary and should have been conducted.

empirelawsuitDownload

Posted in energy policy, Norway, Offshore Wind | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Heerema Thialf is attracting attention!

June 4, 2025 by offshoreenergy

Thialf: a character in Norse mythology who was Thor’s servant.

The Heerema Thialf, a semi-submersible crane vessel (SSCV), is a rather massive presence in coastal waters. The vessel is 661 feet long and 470 feet high, with a lifting capacity of up to 14,200 metric tons, and is the second-largest of its kind.

The Thialf, which set a world record in 2000 by lifting the 11,883-metric-ton Shearwater topside structure in the North Sea, will be driving piles for 54 Vestas 15 MW wind turbines and a substation structure that are part of Equinor’s controversial Empire Wind project.

John Smith tells me that the Thialf is one of the heavy lift vessels being considered for removing California offshore oil and gas platforms. The vessel is too large for the Panama Canal and would have to make the trip around South America or across the Pacific, depending on where it was last working.

The Thialf’s day rate has not been disclosed, but is likely greater than $500k. Equinor claimed to be losing $50 million/week when the project was paused. Thialf costs were presumably a significant chunk of those losses.

Posted in Offshore Wind, decommissioning, energy policy | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a Comment »

Sable shares plunge as judge bars restart of Santa Barbara pipeline

June 3, 2025 by offshoreenergy

John Smith informs me that today (6/6/2025), a Santa Barbara Superior Court issued an order preventing the restart of the Santa Ynez Unit’s onshore pipeline pending Court resolution of the dispute.

Sable’s shares plunged 18% in response to the news.

Posted in California, pipelines, Regulation | Tagged , , | Leave a Comment »

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