Black Elk Energy, ES&H prepare for hurricane season

Aug. 9, 2011
Black Elk Energy LLC has announced a proactive project with ES&H Consulting & Training Group to strategically place waterproof sensors on each platform.

Offshore staff

HOUSTON– Black Elk Energy LLC has announced a proactive project with ES&H Consulting & Training Group to strategically place waterproof sensors on each platform. The sensors emit a continuous location signal that is used as a tracking device.

If the sensor becomes submerged or is damaged, as it might in hurricane conditions, the signal is then lost, suggesting damage to the structure and thus a possible environmental impact. This would alert ES&H Consulting & Training Group and Black Elk Energy to quickly investigate the incident, enabling a more effective management response. Black Elk Energy says it is currently 50% deployed with the remainder to be installed within the next 45 days.

The units are manufactured by ESSI Corp. and utilize low earth orbit satellites (LEO) and transmit on L-band frequencies, providing excellent rain fade performance. The systems send a small data packet with location information, battery status, etc., every four hours as long as there is a clear line of sight to the sky. If no signal is received, resources can be concentrated within four hours’ passage of a storm. The lithium ion batteries last an entire hurricane season and are field serviceable.

08/09/2011