Repsol Exploratory Well Spills Drilling Mud In Alaska

ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — No workers were injured or oil spilled when an exploratory well being drilled by a new company to Alaska's North Slope had an apparent blow-out Wednesday.

An exploratory well near the mouth of the Colville River hit a natural gas patch about 2,600 feet deep, forcing drilling mud back up the rig, Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation spokesman Ty Keltner said in a release.

About 42,000 gallons of drilling mud were released on the gravel pad and snow-covered tundra, Keltner said.

Drilling mud and methane gas shot from the well through a diverter pipe, the Anchorage Daily News reported.

Additional mud was pumped into the borehole in an effort to "kill" the well, but that mud was also blown out, Keltner said.

Spanish oil company Repsol evacuated workers from the site over concerns about the methane gas.

By Wednesday evening, Keltner said Repsol reported that the flow of gas appeared to have nearly stopped and drilling mud was no longer flowing from the well. However, he said the well was not under control.

Repsol has hired Wild Well Control Inc. of Houston, Texas, to assist with controlling the well. That crew is expected to arrive Thursday.

Once the well is controlled, the North Slope company Alaska Clean Seas will begin to clean up the mud.

A state and a North Slope Borough official were also expected to be onsite Thursday. A command incident team was being arranged.

The spill was at the Qugruk 2 drill site near Nuiqsut, about 625 miles north of Anchorage.

Drilling mud, or drilling fluid, is a term for liquids used in drilling that lubricate the drill shaft and cool the hole.

Repsol E&P USA Inc., a subsidiary of Spain energy company Repsol-YPF, announced in March that it would invest at least $768 million in North Slope oil exploration and development. At the time, Repsol said it was working with 70 & 148 LLC and GMT Exploration LLC to develop leases over a 772-square mile area. It began exploratory work this winter.

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Comments

[southerncal]

09:08 PM on 02/19/2012

Solar collectors need to have wind mills as a backup. If the sun is shining the solar collectors do their job but if its cloudy the wind is usually blowing and the wind mills do their job. But there are two problems with solar and wind power and one is storing the power and the other is converting the power into fuel.

[kareemachan]

02:04 PM on 02/17/2012

Drill, baby, drill. Yup, that's working out well.

[Bob Pante]

03:52 PM on 02/19/2012

Stop Bowing, Start Drilling.

[Robert Lee Harrington]

05:55 AM on 02/17/2012

"...Benzene, toluene, ethyl benzene, and xylenes are naturally present in many hydrocarbon deposits, and may be present in drilling and fracking chemicals. These VOCs can cause symptoms such as headache, loss of coordination, and damage to the liver and kidneys; benzene is a carcinogen as well. VOCs help create ground-level ozone, which can contribute to severe respiratory and immune system problems...."

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1817691/

[iceage7]

03:03 AM on 02/17/2012

Spain drilling? No American companies drilling on American soil?

[vakh]

09:04 AM on 02/17/2012

Didnt want to put up with the enviromaniac bs.

[KCooper]

12:34 AM on 02/17/2012

Why not read about the event rather than the Huff version?
http://www.alaskadispatch.com/article/alaska-oil-well-blowout-human-error-or-just-high-pressure-gas

[sunsetter]

11:49 AM on 02/18/2012

Because that does not help "the cause"

[rtrout9496]

12:25 AM on 02/17/2012

I watch the show Black Gold.... they open 100 lb bag after 100 lb bag to mix in that water for the drill bit... that stuff cant be that good for ya as they wear those masks when they open them up and dump them in... cough cough cough...

[wiredfld]

12:21 AM on 02/17/2012

why is A spanish company drilling in alaska ?

[rockymtngma]

03:40 AM on 02/17/2012

Because they bought the drilling rights. And they expect to make a boatload of money, of course.

[mikeemo1]

11:21 PM on 02/16/2012

drilling mud is mainly clay and or bentonite and water mix wich come fron the earth as well i apply it my feilds to make the sand hold moisture
dont sound like to much more than the news media tryin to make a big hype abought not much to me
i guess my big question is why a bop or blow out preventer was not in use bop are a standard in oil drilling sound like possibly a substandard drilling company to me
but thats my oppinion on what litle info that was givin

[spikedance]

10:43 PM on 02/16/2012

We're certainly on the way to destruction. The endless, greedy abuse of this earth will end one of these days.

[natureman44]

12:46 AM on 02/17/2012

Start stopping the greedy abuse by selling your car or cars and turn off your home heating furnace. Then stop buying and using everything made from petroleum products. After a couple of days of going without these products you will become the biggest proponent for oil and gas exploration. lol

[floridan56]

08:28 AM on 02/17/2012

a pat response that means nothing, goes no where, and sounds like a child.

Society is enslaved by the lack of alternatives as policy for profit.

[ttigerlilyx2]

11:34 AM on 02/17/2012

Old, not-natureman, real old. And weak. Move on, no ones buying this nonsense.

[Gardenpass]

09:05 PM on 02/16/2012

Oh noooooooooo! There is mud on the ground somewhere in Alaska, lets organize a protest!!

[mikeemo1]

11:22 PM on 02/16/2012

my thought exactly

[arc23con]

01:56 AM on 02/17/2012

I thought it was Sarah out slinging it again.

[floridan56]

08:29 AM on 02/17/2012

you're a sucker for symantics.

[fmazoman51]

08:52 PM on 02/16/2012

And China is drilling for oil in "Afganistan. We bomb one side of the mountain, they drill the other.

[Bob Pante]

10:33 PM on 02/16/2012

I thought we went to war for the oil. OH, that's right that was a liberal rant.

[spikedance]

10:44 PM on 02/16/2012

Oh bob, do some research. duh.......

[WatcherfrmLeft]

01:47 AM on 02/17/2012

We did. Couldn't make a deal!

[jhird]

08:06 PM on 02/16/2012

MUD?, Call it what it is, BENTONITE. Its not bad or esle most of Southern California would have to be evacuated cause thats where they get alot of it.

[ObamaAgain]

08:04 PM on 02/16/2012

Get in touch with Sara Palin. She blows enough hot air to dry the mud.

[plain andy]

10:31 PM on 02/16/2012

you betcha ..wink ..wink

[natureman44]

12:49 AM on 02/17/2012

liberal BS is the real pollution

[philogical]

10:52 PM on 02/16/2012

HATE SPEECH

[ThinkCreeps]

07:56 AM on 02/17/2012

LOVE THE SHIFT KEY

[CharlesinCalif]

07:40 PM on 02/16/2012

Actually, the term "drilling mud" covers a wide number of formulations tailored to specific requirements. They can be water based or oil based and contain a wide variety of chemcials based on what properties are necesary for the site. How hazardous they can be also varies.

[ccdae5]

07:26 PM on 02/16/2012

Hey HP, this is a non-issue. It was mud, stop trying to make all drilling look bad. DRILL BABY DRILL !!

[jaye27]

07:53 PM on 02/16/2012

"Drilling mud and methane gas" "Drilling mud, or drilling fluid, is a term for liquids used in drilling that lubricate the drill shaft and cool the hole." It's not mud, as in dirt and water mixed together. But, I kinda think you already knew that.

[ccdae5]

03:38 PM on 02/18/2012

It is an environmentally safe mixture of bentonite clay and water. I'm familiar with the industry.

[andrwsroe]

08:17 PM on 02/16/2012

BETTER THAN THIS HAPPENING ONE MILE DEEP IN THE GULF OF MEXICO!!!

[spikedance]

10:46 PM on 02/16/2012

Yes, it's so much better. phew. The Gulf is already ruined in a lot of parts. This is so much better. Wait til they come to your neighborhood. watch your doggies. woof.