Posted on 07/18/2010 9:33:31 AM PDT by blam
UPDATE: Admiral Allen Orders Well Opened, BP Says It Will Keep Well Closed
Gus Lubin
Jul. 18, 2010, 11:15 AM
UPDATE: BP will keep the cap closed until it fears the well is at risk, Operations Chief Doug Suttles said in a conference call this morning.
This contradicts orders from Admiral Allen to open the well and begin siphoning oil -- to avoid a possible pressure-buildup.
So who's behind the wheel? And is BP about to take a huge risk?
PREVIOUSLY: Admiral Allen has ordered BP to open the containment cap that they finally closed last Thursday, according to Bloomberg. BP will return to siphoning oil from the well, capturing more than ever before.
While changing equipment, oil will leak unimpeded into the Gulf.
But what's most worrying are signs of ongoing uncertainty about well integrity. Opening the well is a precaution against an apocalyptic ocean floor collapse:
Allowing oil to flow from the well will make the final kill procedure easier and safer, as it will lower the pressure in the reservoir and make any potential hidden leaks less risky, [Houston professor] Van Nieuwenhuise said.
In other words, the final relief well procedure will NOT be a cakewalk.
[snip]
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
You’re making the mistake, not he.
How are these university scientist different from those that work for BP? They all went to the same schools and attend the same conferences. Just like university scientists, the BP scientists sit in their offices and rarely, unless in an emergency, work on the rigs.
Also, what evidence do you have to call them prostitutes?
That doesn’t mean he knows his butt from a deadeye.
The more important question is, WHEN IS THE MOVIE COMING OUT?
China. Everyone knows if you dig deep enough, you end up in China.
I say we nuke it from space. It's the ony way to be sure.
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Makes sense to me.
Better to begin taking oil (and pressure) out of that deposit while they've got a good containment cap in place, rather than risk another failure/breakdown of the wellbore or cap.
If this cap fails, they're back to square one, with an uncontrolled, super high pressure gusher to contain.
Whoa.
I wonder... what's been holding it up all these years?
Admiral Allen is one of the most competent military men in the United States. You don't get to be Commandant by being incompetent nor a butt-kisser. I have worked with many fine Coast Guard officers, and meeting many flag officers, and Admiral Allen is a leader of men. If he says “Ease the pressure on the cap,” and BP doesn't want to, I would give Admiral Allen the benefit of the doubt.
The Great Wall of China. They had to 'anchor' it real deep, to ensure it could not be toppled.
So, if the GOM collapes, the Great Wall of China will fall over.
I'm not a geologist or an oil drilling professional, but my picture of what's down there can be visualized as a pressurized balloon, filled with oil and gas.
As long as the balloon remains intact, and is not punctured, the forces of equilibrium hold it all together. But once a breach is created (such as by a drilling rig), it allows the oil and gas mixture to escape, thereby changing the balance of internal and external pressures.
I can visualize what would happen, should the internal gasses in the deposit escape suddenly. The internal pressure of the deposit could fall to a level much lower than the external pressure of the surrounding sea bed and the Gulf waters. In that scenario, a collapse of the deposit (sea bed) doesn't seem so far-fetched to me.
Now, any escaping gasses would likely be replaced with sea water, or seabed sludge, but I don't know how that would affect the pressure differentials.
I'll read on to see what better informed people have to say about this.
I don’t get it. Are they trying to say that there is more pressure in that well now that it has been drilled and then capped than there was before they drilled it? That doesn’t compute. Why would the ocean floor be at risk of collapsing just because they drilled it?
Anyone remember that weird “earthquake” in the middle of the Gulf of Mexico a year or so ago?
So would I if he worked for almost anyone besides the current president.
I’m afraid that you have it exactly right. I’m waiting for a second McChrystal type of reaction to Obama’s rules of engagement. This time the enemy is oil.
Oh come on guys... you fixed it too early!!!... we still had at least 6 more weeks of media milking to do on this one!
Open the well back up so we can blame Bush some more!!!
Forgive my ignorance on this, but I thought the federal government's off shore authority only went as far as the 12 mile limit.
This is a deep water well, and is far outside the 12 mile limit, so where do the feds get their authority to involve themselves in BP's decisions?
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