The Offshore Drilling Industry and Rig Construction in the Gulf of Mexico
The Offshore Drilling Industry and Rig Construction in the Gulf of Mexico

Author: Mark J Kaiser

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2013-08-23

Total Pages: 259

ISBN-13: 1447151526

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Jackups, semisubmersibles and drillships are the marine vessels used to drill offshore wells and are referred to collectively as mobile offshore drilling units (MODUs). MODUs are supplied through newbuild construction and operate throughout the world in highly competitive regional markets. The Offshore Drilling Industry and Rig Construction Market in the Gulf of Mexico examines the global MODU service and construction industry and describes the economic impacts of rig construction in the United States. The industrial organization and major players in the contract drilling and construction markets are described and categorized. Dayrates in the contract drilling market are evaluated and hypotheses regarding dayrate factors are tested. Models of contractor decision-making are developed, including a net-present value model of newbuilding investment and stacking decisions, and market capitalization models are derived. Jackup construction shipyards and processes are reviewed along with estimates of labor, equipment, and material cost in U.S. construction. Derivation of newbuild and replacement cost functions completes the treatise. The comprehensive and authoritative coverage of The Offshore Drilling Industry and Rig Construction Market in the Gulf of Mexico makes it an ideal reference for engineers, industry professionals, policy analysts, government regulators, academics and other readers wanting to learn more about this important and fascinating industry.

Macondo Well Deepwater Horizon Blowout
Macondo Well Deepwater Horizon Blowout

Author: National Research Council

Publisher: National Academies Press

Published: 2012-03-02

Total Pages: 213

ISBN-13: 0309221412

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The blowout of the Macondo well on April 20, 2010, led to enormous consequences for the individuals involved in the drilling operations, and for their families. Eleven workers on the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig lost their lives and 16 others were seriously injured. There were also enormous consequences for the companies involved in the drilling operations, to the Gulf of Mexico environment, and to the economy of the region and beyond. The flow continued for nearly 3 months before the well could be completely killed, during which time, nearly 5 million barrels of oil spilled into the gulf. Macondo Well-Deepwater Horizon Blowout examines the causes of the blowout and provides a series of recommendations, for both the oil and gas industry and government regulators, intended to reduce the likelihood and impact of any future losses of well control during offshore drilling. According to this report, companies involved in offshore drilling should take a "system safety" approach to anticipating and managing possible dangers at every level of operation-from ensuring the integrity of wells to designing blowout preventers that function under all foreseeable conditions-in order to reduce the risk of another accident as catastrophic as the Deepwater Horizon explosion and oil spill. In addition, an enhanced regulatory approach should combine strong industry safety goals with mandatory oversight at critical points during drilling operations. Macondo Well-Deepwater Horizon Blowout discusses ultimate responsibility and accountability for well integrity and safety of offshore equipment, formal system safety education and training of personnel engaged in offshore drilling, and guidelines that should be established so that well designs incorporate protection against the various credible risks associated with the drilling and abandonment process. This book will be of interest to professionals in the oil and gas industry, government decision makers, environmental advocacy groups, and others who seek an understanding of the processes involved in order to ensure safety in undertakings of this nature.

Deep Water: The Gulf Oil Disaster and the Future of Offshore Drilling: Report to the President, January 2011
Deep Water: The Gulf Oil Disaster and the Future of Offshore Drilling: Report to the President, January 2011

Author: National Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Dril

Publisher: Government Printing Office

Published: 2011-05-24

Total Pages: 400

ISBN-13: 9780160873720

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

On April 20, 2010, the Macondo well blew out, costing the lives of 11 men, and beginning a catastrophe that sank the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig and spilled nearly 5 million barrels of crude oil into the Gulf of Mexico. The spill disrupted an entire region’s economy, damaged fisheries and critical habitats, and brought vividly to light the risks of deepwater drilling for oil and gas—the latest frontier in the national energy supply. Soon after, President Barack Obama appointed a seven-member Commission to investigate the disaster, analyze its causes and effects, and recommend the actions necessary to minimize such risks in the future. The Commission’s report offers the American public and policymakers alike the fullest account available of what happened in the Gulf and why, and proposes actions—changes in company behavior, reform of government oversight, and investments in research and technology—required as industry moves forward to meet the nation’s energy needs.

Fire on the Horizon
Fire on the Horizon

Author: John Konrad

Publisher: Harper Collins

Published: 2011-03-01

Total Pages: 328

ISBN-13: 0062063022

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

"A phenomenal feat of journalism. . . . I tore through it like a novel but with the queasy knowledge that the whole damn thing is true." —Sebastian Junger, author of The Perfect Storm and War Blending exclusive first-person interviews and penetrating investigative reporting, oil rig captain John Konrad and veteran Washington Post writer Tom Shroder give the definitive, white-knuckled account of the Deepwater Horizon explosion—as well as a riveting insider’s view of the byzantine culture of offshore drilling that made the disaster inevitable. As the world continues to cope with the oil spill’s grim aftermath—with environmental and economic consequences all the more dire in a region still rebuilding from Hurricane Katrina—Konrad and Schroder’s real-time account of the disaster shows us just where things went wrong, and points the way to a safer future for us all.

The Offshore Imperative
The Offshore Imperative

Author: Tyler Priest

Publisher: Texas A&M University Press

Published: 2009-10-12

Total Pages: 337

ISBN-13: 1603441565

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

After World War II, the discovery and production of onshore oil in the United States faced decline. As a result, offshore prospects in the Gulf of Mexico took on new strategic value. Shell Oil Company pioneered many of the early moves offshore and continues to lead the way into “deepwater.” Tyler Priest’s study is the first time the modern history of Shell Oil has been told in any detail. Drawing on interviews with Shell retirees and many other sources, Priest relates how the imagination, talent, and hard work of personnel at all levels shaped the evolution of the company. The narrative also covers important aspects of Shell Oil’s corporate evolution, but the company’s pioneering steps into the deepwater fields of the Gulf of Mexico are its signature achievement. Priest’s study demonstrates that engineers did not suddenly create methods for finding and producing oil and gas from astounding water depths. Rather, they built on a half-century of accumulated knowledge and improvements to technical systems. Shell Oil’s story is unique, but it also illuminates the modern history of the petroleum industry. As Priest demonstrates, this company’s experiences offer a starting point for examining the understudied topics of strategic decision-making, scientific research, management of technology, and corporate organization and culture within modern oil companies, as well as how these activities applied to offshore development. “. . . tells a dramatic story of imaginative businessmen and engineers who propelled Shell forward in the search for ways to locate and recover oil from the depths of the sea.”—Southwestern Historical Quarterly “This book’s narrative is sustained throughout by easily understood explanations of the technical details of drilling and production.”—Journal of Southern History

Offshore Pioneers: Brown & Root and the History of Offshore Oil and Gas
Offshore Pioneers: Brown & Root and the History of Offshore Oil and Gas

Author: Joseph A. Pratt

Publisher: Elsevier

Published: 1997-11-03

Total Pages: 322

ISBN-13: 0080513026

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Fifty years ago, in November 1947, Brown & Root helped Kerr-McGee build the first out-of-sight-land offshore platform that produced oil. The date is widely celebrated as the birth of the modern offshore industry. In the years since this historic occasion, Brown & Root has continued to pioneer in the design and construction of offshore pipelines and platforms. Along with the rest of the offshore industry, the company has helped develop technology capable of finding and producing oil in deepwater and in harsh environments around the world.This history puts a human face on the process of technological change. Using the words of many of those who took part in Brown & Root's offshore activities, this book recounts their efforts to find practical ways to recover offshore oil. Building on lessons learned in the Gulf of Mexico before and after World War II, the company's personnel adapted offshore technologies to conditions encountered in Venezuela, the Middle East, Alaska, and other regions before becoming one of the first engineering and construction companies to confront the challenge of North Sea development in the 1960's.Through times of boom and bust in the oil industry, the search for effective technology had continued. The process has not always been smooth, but the results have been impressive. As we enter a new and exciting era in offshore technology, the history of the first fifty years of the industry provides a useful context for understanding current and future events.

Petroleum and Marine Technology Information Guide
Petroleum and Marine Technology Information Guide

Author: J. Hutcheon

Publisher: CRC Press

Published: 2003-09-02

Total Pages: 420

ISBN-13: 1482271230

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

First published in 1981 as the Offshore Information Guide this guide to information sources has been hailed internationally as an indispensable handbook for the oil, gas and marine industries.

Oil Rig and Superbarge Floating Settlements
Oil Rig and Superbarge Floating Settlements

Author: Joseph Lim

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2020-06-25

Total Pages: 234

ISBN-13: 9811552975

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

This book presents a collection of proposed offshore and nearshore settlements in response to the emerging consequences of climate change. These settlements are counterpoints to megacities with unsustainable ecological footprints. The continuing depletion of natural resources has resulted in displaced communities, prompting the following research questions: What if we floated on sea instead of inefficiently consuming land? Could we use wave energy instead of nuclear energy? How can we replenish food supply and regenerate marine eco-diversity? How would our lives be shaped by new offshore settlements? What would we use as structures for shelter, farming, scaffolding and recreation? Floating cities emerged in the 1960s with Buckminster Fuller’s Triton City and Kenzo Tange’s Tokyo Bay Plan, and current manifestations include Vincent Callebaut’s Lilypad, the Seasteading Institute and the mile-long Freedom Ship housing 50,000 people. As an alternative to these examples, the book proposes the repurposing of three types of marine vessel: jack-up platforms, semi-submersibles and superbarges as sustainable, habitable structures to accommodate 20% of the projected 8.1 billion global population in 2025. The spatially conceived floating settlements include food and energy supplies for housing, recreation, education at sea, post-disaster health care and resettlement for nearshore deployment.

Offshore Operation Facilities
Offshore Operation Facilities

Author: Huacan Fang

Publisher: Gulf Professional Publishing

Published: 2014-09-05

Total Pages: 1177

ISBN-13: 0123972841

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Offshore Operation Facilities: Equipment and Procedures provides new engineers with the knowledge and methods that will assist them in maximizing efficiency while minimizing cost and helps them prepare for the many operational variables involved in offshore operations. This book clearly presents the working knowledge of subsea operations and demonstrates how to optimize operations offshore. The first half of the book covers the fundamental principles governing offshore engineering structural design, as well as drilling operations, procedures, and equipment. The second part includes common challenges of deep water oil and gas engineering as well as beach (shallow) oil engineering, submarine pipeline engineering, cable engineering, and safety system engineering. Many examples are included from various offshore locations, with special focus on offshore China operations. In the offshore petroleum engineering industry, the ability to maintain a profitable business depends on the efficiency and reliability of the structure, the equipment, and the engineer. Offshore Operation Facilities: Equipment and Procedures assists engineers in meeting consumer demand while maintaining a profitable operation. Comprehensive guide to the latest technology, strategies, and best practices for offshore operations Step-by-step approach for dealing with common challenges such as deepwater and shallow waters Includes submarine pipeline, cable engineering, and safety system engineering Unique examples from various offshore locations around the world, with special focus on offshore China