Question

Please analyze what caused "BP and Deepwater Horizon Disaster of 2010".

Answer 1

Resilience

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WHAT CAUSED THE DEEPWATER HORIZON DISASTER?

By Arthur E. Berman, originally published by The Oil Drum

May 21, 2010

Author’s Note: I am grateful to the many drilling and completion engineers that consulted with me on this post to arrive at plausible explanations and interpretations of what happened in the final hours on the semisubmersible drilling rig Deepwater Horizon in the Gulf of Mexico. The analysis that follows is based on these discussions as well as my own 32 years of experience as a geologist working in the oil and gas industry.

It is early in the process of discovering what really happened. Because of the gravity and potential impact of this disaster on the nation and my industry, however, I wanted to provide an early and more investigative perspective than much of what has appeared in the media to date. The risk, of course, is that more information will invalidate some of what follows. I, therefore, wish to clarify that this is a fact-based interpretation of what may have happened on the Deepwater Horizon on April 20, 2010 but, in the end, it is an interpretation. – Art Berman

The blowout and oil spill on the Deepwater Horizon in the Gulf of Mexico was caused by a flawed well plan that did not include enough cement between the 7-inch production casing and the 9 7/8-inch protection casing. The presumed blowout preventer (BOP) failure is an important but secondary issue. Although the resulting oil spill has potentially grave environmental implications, recent efforts to limit the flow with an insertion tube have apparently been effective. Continuous efforts to slow or stop the flow include drilling two nearby relief wells that may intersect the MC 252 wellbore within 60 to 90 days In a few hours, they would have been ready to move the drilling rig off location so that a completion rig could move on. At about 10:00 p.m., the rig unexpectedly began to shake and a loud surging noise was accompanied by natural gas, drilling mud and sea water that shot high above the floor of the drill ship. The gas exploded and the rig was engulfed in flames. A second explosion followed and the electricity went out. Eleven men died instantly and 115 others rushed to the lifeboats or jumped into the Gulf of Mexico. This all happened so fast that those who died probably had no time to understand what was happening. Two days later, the Deepwater Horizon sank to the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico, and oil has been spilling into the Gulf at rates of at least 5,000 barrels per day since then(there are 42 gallons in a barrel

These recommendations will be based on my investigation of the failures that led to the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster. It will determine the social failures, which include ethics, communication, training, and management, but will focus on the technical failures, which includes mechanical failures, and the lack of maintenance on critical components in the drilling process.Management failures existed in the BP part of the operation where the site leaders relied too much on the subcontractors resulting in two types of problems directly related to the accident. Several cement tests were not done on time and if BP was properly examining test results they would have known that some of them failed. BP did not bother checking the contractor’s competence for conducting and interpreting test results. In addition, my analysis noticed a lack of communication between the site leaders and the engineering team onshore. Finally, ethical issues were prevalent where the subcontractors did not feel compelled to correct the site leaders in their decision making even though their experience and expertise told them otherwise (Macondo Gulf Oil Disaster, 123). An addition to social failures, mechanical failures occurred during the drilling of the well. A reading of the negative pressure test showed that there was a failure in the cement and that fluids were able to breach the well. Inadequate spacers, according to BP, were used to expedite the drilling and rendered the crew incapable of identify the breach. Once the mud started to backup onto the platform, the blowout preventers were activated but did not respond. The failure of this preventative system may be due to high pressure fluid flowing upward into the pipe causing it not to seal or from a lack of maintenance resulting in the hydraulic system operating the rams to malfunction (Macondo Gulf Oil Disaster, 207).Our coastal waters, populations, and economy cannot afford another spill similar to the BP disaster. Changes in management, regulations, and the technology of preventive systems are a must in order to continue deepwater offshore drilling.