MWCC launches containment system

Feb. 17, 2011
The Marine Well Containment Co. says it has completed and made available its initial well containment response system.

Offshore staff

HOUSTON – The Marine Well Containment Co. says it has completed and made available its initial well containment response system. The system is for rapid containment response to an underwater well control incident in deepwaters of the Gulf of Mexico.

The system has a subsea capping stack to shut in oil flow or to flow the oil via flexible pipes and risers to surface vessels. The system also includes subsea dispersant injection equipment, manifolds, and, through mutual aid among members, capture vessels to provide surface processing and storage.

The interim system can operate in water depths up to 8,000 ft (2,438 m) and has storage and processing capacity for up to 60,000 b/d of liquids. The capping stack has a maximum operating pressure of 15,000 psi (103 MPa). The equipment is located on the U.S. Gulf Coast.

The Marine Well Containment Co. is a partnership among ExxonMobil, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, and Shell. MWCC says additional work on this initial system is under way with completion scheduled in 2012.

02/17/2011