Deepwater drilling

Discoverer Inspiration delivers new containment cap to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on 10 July 2010. In the background are the Discoverer Enterprise, GSF Development Driller II, and Helix Producer I

Deepwater drilling,[1] or deep well drilling,[2] is the process of creating holes in the Earth's crust using a drilling rig for oil extraction under the deep sea. There are approximately 3400 deepwater wells in the Gulf of Mexico with depths greater than 150 meters.[3][full citation needed]

Deepwater drilling has not been technologically or economically feasible for many years, but with rising oil prices,[when?] more companies are investing in this sector.[4] Major investors include Halliburton, Diamond Offshore, Transocean, Geoservices, and Schlumberger. The deepwater gas and oil market has been back on the rise since the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster, with total expenditures of around US$35 billion per year in the market and total global capital expenditures of US$167 billion in the past four years.[5] Industry analysis by business intelligence company Visiongain estimated in 2011 that total expenditures in global deepwater infrastructure would reach US$145 billion.[6]

A HowStuffWorks article explains how and why deepwater drilling is practiced:

Not all oil is accessible on land or in shallow water. You can find some oil deposits buried deep under the ocean floor. ... Using sonic equipment, oil companies determine the drilling sites most likely to produce oil. Then they use a mobile offshore drilling unit (MODU) to dig the initial well. Some units are converted into production rigs, meaning they switch from drilling for oil to capturing oil once it's found. Most of the time, the oil company will replace the MODU with a more permanent oil production rig to capture oil. ...The MODU's job is to drill down into the ocean's floor to find oil deposits. The part of the drill that extends below the deck and through the water is called the riser. The riser allows for drilling fluids to move between the floor and the rig. Engineers lower a drill string – a series of pipes designed to drill down to the oil deposit – through the riser.[7]

In the Deepwater Horizon oil spill of 2010, a large explosion occurred, killing workers and spilling oil into the Gulf of Mexico while a BP oil rig was drilling in deep waters.

The expansion of deepwater drilling is happening despite accidents in offshore fields ... Despite the risks, the deepwater drilling trend is spreading in the Mediterranean and off the coast of East Africa after a string of huge discoveries of natural gas. ... The reason for the resumption of such drilling, analysts say, is continuing high demand for energy worldwide.[8]

  1. ^ Leffler, William L.; Pattarozzi, Richard; Sterling, Gordon (2011). Deepwater Petroleum Exploration & Production: A Nontechnical Guide. PennWell Books. ISBN 978-0878148462.
  2. ^ Jeffery, Walter Henry (1921). Deep Well Drilling: The Principles and Practices of Deep Well Drilling, and a Hand Book of Useful Information for the Well Driller. W. H. Jeffery Company.
  3. ^ "Maps and GIS Data | Bureau of Ocean Energy Management".
  4. ^ The Deepwater Ultra Deepwater Exploration Production Market 2013–2023. visiongain. January 2, 2013. Retrieved 21 September 2013.
  5. ^ "The World Deepwater Market Report 2010-2014". Archived from the original on 2014-01-09. Retrieved 2014-01-09.
  6. ^ The Deepwater Ultra Deepwater Market 2011–2021. visiongain. May 31, 2011. Archived from the original on June 8, 2011. Retrieved 21 September 2013.
  7. ^ Freudenrich, Ph.D, Craig; Strickland, Jonathan (12 April 2001). "How Oil Drilling Works". Retrieved 21 September 2013.
  8. ^ Krauss, Clifford; Broder, John M. (2012-03-04). "Deepwater Oil Drilling Picks Up Again as BP Disaster Fades". New York Times.