USA: Transocean Finds No Oil Leaking from Sunken Deepwater Horizon Rig or Riser

A comprehensive two-day underwater examination conducted by Transocean and the US Coast Guard (USCG) on October 4th and 5th confirmed that there are no hydrocarbons leaking from of the sunken Deepwater Horizon or the riser, the pipe that linked the rig to the well head before the Macondo accident last year. The inspection, conducted with the use of a remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV), also failed to find any “sheen” or oil in the area.

Transocean, in cooperation with the USCG, undertook the inspection after a “sheen” was reported on the water in the vicinity of the sealed Macondo well and the USCG issued a notice to the company. The USCG issued the following statement after the completion of that inspection:

“Transocean deployed an ROV on Oct. 4-5, 2011. Transocean is best able to speak to the ROV deployments, but Coast Guard experts viewed the feed from the ROV and all agreed that nothing shown in the feed provided any indication that there was release of oil from the riser, the fuel tanks or any other debris at the wreckage site. No discharge or leaking from the riser or the wreckage was observed. Furthermore, there was no oil product either on the surface or subsurface that could be sampled. And, recent BP ROV footage of the capped Macondo 252 well from Aug 26-27, 2011, has shown no evidence of a release from the wellhead or well. The cause of the sheens remains under investigation.”

About Transocean

Transocean is the world’s largest offshore drilling contractor and the leading provider of drilling management services worldwide. With a fleet of 135 mobile offshore drilling units as well as two Ultra-Deepwater Drillships and four High-Specification Jackups under construction, Transocean’s fleet is considered one of the most modern and versatile in the world due to its emphasis on technically demanding segments of the offshore drilling business. Transocean owns or operates a contract drilling fleet of 50 High-Specification Floaters (Ultra-Deepwater, Deepwater and Harsh-Environment semisubmersibles and drillships), 25 Midwater Floaters, nine High-Specification Jackups, 50 Standard Jackups and one swamp barge.

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Source: Transocean , October 13 , 2011