The imminent death of the BP oil well?

I’ve seen a few headlines today that seem to portray the Macondo Well as some sort of living creature, like it’s still writhing and twitching as it tries to survive the mountain of cement that has been set up on top of it.

Let’s be clear on something, this well was “killed”, ie. put into a static condition after the successful static-kill (bullheading) procedure in July. Had it not been dead, there’s no way that the blow out preventer could have been removed safely for inspection and analysis.

The procedure that BP is working on right now, or that may have just been completed, is essentially the plug and abandonment (P&A) of the relief well drilled by the Deepwater Developer III (DDIII).

BP’s Macondo well in Mississippi Canyon Block 252 is sealed for good, but there’s clearly still an immense amount of hydrocarbons left at the bottom of that well. Considering the recent tragic, and politically-charged history of this prospect, it’ll be interesting to see if BP decides to go back and develop this reservoir in the future…  Continue the discussion in the forum

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