US Lease Sale off Alaska Coast Draws One Bid
The U.S. government on Friday received just a single bid, from Hilcorp Alaska, for oil and gas drilling rights off the coast of Alaska the first federal auction in the region in more than five years.The offer of nearly 1 million acres in the Cook Inlet was among the concessions to the oil and gas sector included in President Joe Biden's signature climate change law, the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).Under the law, the Interior Department is required to hold the sale by Dec. 31.
Oil Tank Platform Collapses, Oil Spills in Terrebonne Bay, Louisiana
The U.S. Coast Guard is responding to an oil spill after an oil tank platform collapsed at the Hilcorp Caillou Island facility in Terrebonne Bay, Louisiana, on Monday.Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Houma personnel initially received a notification from the National Response Center stating the platform experienced a structural failure causing a tank to fall into the water and spill the oil. Environmental Safety & Health Consulting Services has been hired as the oil spill removal organization.
BP Exits Alaska with $5.6Bln Sale
British oil major BP Alaska announced that it is selling its entire business to Hilcorp Alaska, marking the exit from Alaska after six decades.The $5.6 billion sale includes Opens a New Window. interests in the Prudhoe Bay oil field, Point Thomson gas field and the trans-Alaska pipeline system, BP said in a release.Bob Dudley, BP group chief executive, said: "Alaska has been instrumental in BP's growth and success for well over half a century and our work there has helped shape the careers of many throughout the company. We are extraordinarily proud of the world-class business we have built, working alongside our partners and the State of Alaska…
Crude Oil Spill Near Port Sulphur, La.
The U.S. Coast Guard said on Sunday it is responding to a crude oil discharge in Rattle Snake Bayou, southwest of Port Sulphur, La.Coast Guard watchstanders in New Orleans received a report from the National Response Center that the well was reported to be leaking.It is unknown when the discharge began, and the amount discharged has not been determined. The well is rated to produce 5,476 gallons of oil per day.Responders are working to locate and secure the source of the discharge. The well's owner Hilcorp has contracted ES&H as an oil spill response organization.
Hovercraft Creates Lifeline to Alaska Drill Site
About half a million barrels of oil is extracted each day from Alaska’s Prudhoe Bay oilfields. One of its drilling sites, Endicott, is located on a spit of land connected by the gravel Prudhoe Bay road system and is normally accessible by truck – until recently, when the road was washed out. Faced with the dilemma of how to get workers, food and supplies to the work site, Hilcorp, a privately-held exploration and production companies in the U.S., turned to Crowley and its hovercraft, Arctic Hawk.
BP Gulf Spill Trial Set For January
The high-stakes penalty phase of BP's trial over its role in the 2010 U.S. Gulf of Mexico oil spill will start next January, court officials said on Tuesday, and billions of dollars could be on the line. Fines under the Clean Water Act could top $17 billion, an amount more than BP's profit in 2013, which after items was $13.4 billion. U.S. District Judge Carl Barbier in New Orleans has considerable leeway and could assess a much smaller fine after the third and likely final stage of the trial, which will assess the environmental impact of the largest offshore spill in U.S. history. The third phase will run from Jan. 20 to Feb. 5 of 2015. The trial's first phase dealt with the issue of negligence and concluded last April.
BOEMRE Responds to Death on Offshore Platform
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) is responding to a report of a fatality at Hilcorp Energy Company's West Cameron Block 643 Platform A, a natural gas production platform approximately 129 miles offshore Louisiana, south of Lake Charles, in about 375 feet of water. The platform has not been in production since 2008 and operations to plug and abandon its wells were underway. According to the company's report, at approximately 4:00 a.m., an employee of Alliance Oilfield Services working for Hilcorp was assisting in abandonment operations when he fell through a deck opening. The victim was assisted by first responders on the platform, then med-evaced by helicopter for emergency medical attention. He was later pronounced dead at the hospital.
Coast Guard Investigates Spill
Coast Guard pollution investigators are en route to a reported oil well line rupture in the Atchalaya Basin, north of Marsh Island. Hilcorp, a Houston company that owns the line, reported the spill at 9:30 a.m. The spill is estimated to be 100 barrels, or 4,200 gallons; the sheen is reported to be 500 yards by 300 yards. Oil Mop, an Oil Spill Response Organization, is on scene cleaning the oil, which is contained in the surrounding marsh.
