"Gunner Asch" wrote in message
...
On Sun, 2 May 2010 18:37:29 +1000, "Grumpy"
wrote:
"Gunner Asch" wrote in message
. ..
On Sat, 01 May 2010 23:50:37 -0500, F. George McDuffee
wrote:
Facts will eek out. I think I know the BP manager in charge
(contractor).
I sure don't want to call him. Another friend runs robots to put on
trees
and repair bottom stuff.
===========
The problem is that *NO ONE* is coming clean on what
happened. For example, was a BOP [blow out preventer] even
installed?
http://www.andrewhalcro.com/exclusiv..._out_protector
There were supposed to be other "fail safe" shut-offs, but
it is apparent these did not function either. A robotic sub
reportedly attempted to activate one of the secondary
shut-offs with no success. Is it possible that they were
unable to locate because there are none, or were "quakers"
or "dummies" installed to save money.
Ive worked in and around the oil fields for many years, and frankly I
cannot imagine in my worst moments, any oil company NOT using a BOP in
any drilling operation of this sort. Frankly..they are far far too
critical for even minor "kicks" and all manner of other uses while
drilling a well.
It would be like having a motor vehicle without a reverse gear.
Gunner
I agree with you Gunner. Not even the little two bit gas rigs in southern
Alberta back in the seventies were that stupid. They used to get up to all
sorts of shifty tricks to make a buck as the oil companies screwed the
last
cent out of every contract. They often would start drilling ahead as soon
as
they had set cement. As the holes were often only a couple of thousand
feet
deep, they would be into the Milk River sand before the cement had set up
properly. They have some pretty high pressure pockets in that
formation,and
every once in a while somebody would run out of luck and hit one before
the
surface pipe was well set in. It would blow the drill string,surface pipe
and BOP's out through the monkey board usually striking a spark and
setting
the whole bloody lot alight. It would then burn for days untill they got
another rig in to drill a relief hole and kill it all.
Because it was on land,and in south central nowhere, it didn't get much
publicity. The rig hands generally saw it coming and watched it all from
the
next township. The sky was lit up most of the time from flares anyway so
no
one paid much attention to another fire.
By the late sixties, the companies got a lot smater and had there guys
wathing things and the practices improved a lot
Indeed. Hell..when I was working on bull**** rigs, we used BOPs on gas
laden wells when we pulled pump strings..this back in the late 70s. The
oil companies got a hell of a lot smarter..cash talks really well in the
patch and ****ing money away on putting out a well fire eats way way
into the bottom line, so they got religion. BOP rental was very very
cheap insurance and then it became law.
Gunner
All the little rigs had BOP's as part of their equipment and didn't rent
them.
I did a jon near Red Deer, Alberta once on a really nasty well. It was a
great earner, but the sour gas ( H2S) was high as was the shut in pressure.
The company didn't want to kill the well,but needed to change the production
tubing. We set a plug at the bottom of the production string and a snubber
set was installed at the bottom of the workover rig as the pressure would
have blown the tubing string into orbit. Every length was snubbed out of the
hole and any gas was vented and burned to get rid if the sour gas. It must
have cost a fortune just to change the production tubing!