Atchafalaya Basin Oil & Gas Exploration 2015 - Ain’t like it used to be

Inland offshore  Drilling Rig 

in  the  

Bayou Pigeon _Grand Lake vector 

On Dec. 18, 2015 after 40 years of ban,  the U.S. Congress  lifted the U.S. Oil Export ban.  U.S. House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, of Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, said, “Lifting the ban will create thousands of jobs here in Louisiana and nearly 1 million jobs nationwide, while lowering prices at the pump and strengthening our national security.

This  could be a real boom  for all of  South Louisiana. but  more importantly the  levee communities  on the Atchafalaya  Basin eg., Bayou Pigeon, Belle  River, Pierre Part and especially  Morgan city.

How? Why ?

“Rising from the Ashes”

New overseas demand  may make it economic feasible  for the  deeper drilling of old oil & gas  fields. With a history of over 65 years of production, there are many old oil fields in the  Atchafalaya where the deep oil and gas potential  has not been adequately  tested. The deeper production is far better than from the original shallow wells, . 

With this news in mind, I thought I would share with ya'll  a pictorial essay on  just  such one of these wells. At the time of this drilling I did not realize this was  one those “Rising from the Ashes”oil fields. Note that deep drilling has  some safety issues to deal  with, ie., poisonous   sulfide gas  and  high pressures.

These  rigs  are towering structures !

Most folks remember the Deepwater Horizon oil spill (also referred to as the BP oil spill, the BP oil disaster, the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, and the Macondo blowout) which  began on 20 April 2010 in the Gulf of Mexico on the BP-owned Transocean-operated Macondo Prospec. Part of the problem  was the  Blowout Preventers.  In case you have never  seen a blowout preventer the above pictures is of the blowout preventers on this well.

Drilling in the Atchafalaya  Basin has gotten a lot more complicated  because it is a National  Heritage Area and covered  by  Federal 'Wetlands'  Rules and regulations.   Technology has made  drilling a lot safer.  More  drilling should require  more support services and   jobs  for our communities.  Let's  do it safely and environmental sound.

Enjoy !