Houston Maritime Lawyers — 11.22.15 Offshore Drilling Update

Houston maritime lawyers at Morrow & Sheppard monitor developments offshore Gulf of Mexico. This post will summarize noteworthy recent news that might affect personal injury lawsuits, including offshore accident and maritime cases in Texas and Louisiana.

Houston Maritime Lawyers Discuss Recent Chevron Gulf of Mexico Find

At the end of October 2015, Chevron Corp., a California company that has most of its operations based in Houston, announced a successful appraisal of its Anchor discovery in the lower Tertiary Wilcox Trend.

The find includes an oil and gas hydrocarbon column that is at least 1,800 feet.

Chevron has a 55 percent working interest in the Anchor discovery. The remaining interests have been farmed out to Houston-based Cobalt International Energy, Samson Offshore Anchor LLC, and Venari Resources LLC.

Maritime Vessels Begin Work On Noble Energy’s Big Bend Discovery Gulf of Mexico Development

Noble Energy, one of the first independent offshore oil and gas producers to explore the Gulf of Mexico, recently announced that it has begun production operations on its Big Bend Project.

The single well that has been drilled is expected to produce 20,000 barrels of oil beginning in November 2015.

Noble Energy expects its Dantzler project to begin producing in November as well. Big Bend and Dantzler are collectively referred to as the “Rio Grande Project.” The Big Bend discovery is located in 7,290 feet of water. The wells in the Rio Grande Project are supposed to be tied back to the Thunder Hawk Platform.

Noble’s Operations Vice President, Gary Willingham, announced that “We continue to build on our strong track record of major project execution with Big Bend coming online less than three years from discovery and within our sanctioned budget.” He also said that the company will continue with offshore Gulf of Mexico projects despite the oil crisis, because “Short cycle times to first production, strong well deliverability, and low production costs from our Gulf of Mexico projects deliver attractive returns even in today’s environment.”

Offshore Injury Lawyers Are Following Atwood’s Extension Of Gulf Of Mexico Drilling Contract

In November 2015, Atwood Oceanics and Noble Energy extended the contract for the Atwood Advantage, a two-year-old drillship. The Advantage is an ultra-deepwater drillship capable of drilling in 12,000 feet of water, and to total depths of 40,000 feet.

Its typical crew complement is 200.

Working offshore can be extremely dangerous work, particularly if companies do not take proper precautions. For example, as our Houston offshore injury lawyers have reported, a person died on a Pacific Drilling drillship earlier in 2015, and family members may be able to pursue wrongful death claims under applicable maritime laws.

Houston Expands Offshore Drilling Education Program

Although most short-term projections for Gulf of Mexico offshore drilling remain grim, Houston schools continue to take the long view.

Houston Independent School District plans to expand its Energy Institute High School to 1,000 students in the next two years. The Houston school will include a $37 million facility that has 110,000 feet of space.

The Institute includes studies in geosciences, offshore technology, alternative energy, welding, and even ROV piloting.

Offshore Workers Injured On The Job May Be Entitled To Compensation

If you or a loved one has been injured offshore, you may be entitled to compensation.

The laws governing maritime injuries can be tricky, and you should seek out advice as soon as possible from an attorney who has handled maritime injury cases.

The maritime injury lawyers at Morrow & Sheppard have membership in the Maritime Law Association, provide free consultations to everyone, and only get paid if you win. Call us now at 1-800-489-2216 to discuss your case.