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| BP Macondo Oil Well
Update Tuesday, July 27, 2010 The cap on the well is showing good integrity with pressure slowly increasing and now at 6932 psi. They will be releasing the storm packer in the DD3 relief well. Wednesday and Thursday should be devoted to well clean out and by Friday they should begin to set the casing. BP will likely cement the relief well late in week. At that point they should be ready to perform a static kill on the Macondo well by pumping mud into the top. Wednesday, July 21, 2010 The main point at the BP briefing weather was that work on the relief well for the Macondo has been delayed due to the potential of a tropical storm during the period when BP had planed to set the casing in the well. The entire operation could take as much as a week and there needs to be a clear weather window before operations resume. They have set a storm packer (plug) in the relief well about 300 feet below the ocean floor as a precautionary measure. It will be removed and BP will proceed with cleaning the well bore and setting the final casing as soon as there is a weather window. BP is awaiting government approval to introduce heavy mud into the Macondo well to counterbalance the oil pressure. If successful this would kill the well and provide temporary insurance against further leaks until the relief well is completed and the Macondo is cemented shut. Tuesday, July 20, 2010 At BP's 3.:30 PM briefing by Kent Wells there was little change in the status of the well. The pressure continues to rise. It is at 6,834 psi now rising at less than one psi / hour indicating that the well still has integrity. It continues to be shut-in subject to approval every 24 hours by Admiral Allen. The static kill remains an option once again subject to government approval. In any case, the permanent solution remains the relief well with 50-60 feet remaining to drill. Monday, July 19, 2010 At BP's 5:00PM briefing by Kent Wells there was discussion of the possibility of a static kill of the Macondo well. This would entail pumping heavy mud from the top of the well until the weight of the mud overcomes the pressure from the oil. This would add another layer of protection and enhance the already high probability of success from the relief well. It is unlikely that BP would attempt to cement the well from the top. The DD3 relief well is four feet horizontally at a 2.8° angle from the Macondo at a depth of 17,862 feet. This is a casing point and they will be cementing the casing before continuing a few feet to encounter the Macondo. At that point they will mill through the casing and introduce cement into the Macondo. This should be followed by milling through the pipe, introducing more cement and permanently killing the well. Had the Macondo been successful it would have been one of the top five producers in the Gulf of Mexico. |
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