Schlumberger has expanded its Gulf of Mexico seismic data portfolio by launching a new survey in the Campeche basin.
The survey offshore will cover an area of 80,000sq km and will be carried out using two fleets of WesterGeco vessels.
Maurice Nessim, president at WesternGeco, said: “Building on our experience in the US Gulf of Mexico, we are focused on collaborating with customers to understand and prioritize the hydrocarbon potential in the Mexican waters of the Gulf.
Imagine parking your $300 million boat for months out in the open sea, with well-paid mechanics hovering around it and the engine running.
The Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea have become a garage for deepwater drillships -- at a cost of about $70,000 a day each. It’s either that or send your precious rig to a scrapyard.
The dilemma underscores how an offshore industry that geared up for an oil boom is grappling with a bust. Rig owners are putting equipment aside at unprecedented numbers as customers including ConocoPhillips pull back from higher-cost deepwater exploration. That’s helped make Transocean Ltd. and Ensco Plc two of the three worst performers in the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index over the past year.
The latest phase of a US trial to decide how much BP should pay in penalties for the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill has ended.
The amount BP could face in Clean Water Act penalties could reach 13.7 billion dollars (9.1 billion), but a decision from the judge is not expected for months.
The New Orleans trial closed after two weeks of testimony and arguments by lawyers for the US justice department, which wants a high penalty, and BP, which wants a lower figure.
Lawyers may file briefs in the case as late as April and it remains unclear how soon after that District Judge Carl Barbier will rule.
BP has claimed any gulf spill compensation payments by it should be less to reflect the oil price plunge.
The oil giant is currently in a legal wrangle over what civil penalties it should make following the Deepwater Horizon rig disaster in 2010.
The company said in legal filings before the final round of the case next month that penalties – which could beup to $18billion – would have a “very significant economic impact” on BP and its exploration and production business.
BP claims any future ruling should take into account the fall in the oil price, the company’s clean-up efforts and the environmental improvement in the Gulf of Mexico.
