US Deepwater Operators Adapt To New Realities

摘要

After nearly a year of bureaucratic paralysis, operators in the US Gulf of Mexico have begun adapting to tough new regulations enacted in the wake of last year's Macondo blowout and oil spill. Over the past few weeks, companies have obtained the first new deepwater drilling permits issued since the disaster, thanks largely to their involvement in two consortiums that have prepared rapid-response oil spill containment systems — the Marine Well Containment Co. (MWCC) and the Helix Well Containment Group (PIW Oct 11,p5). The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement has issued deepwater permits for individual wells to Royal Dutch Shell, Eni, Statoil, Noble, Exxon Mobil, Chevron, BHP Billiton and ATP Oil & Gas. Shell has also become the first company to secure post-Macondo approval for an exploration plan — a more expansive type of proposal that involves multiple wells (PIW Mar.28,p7).