Bristish Petroleum's Macondo Well accident BOP failure Research Paper

Bristish Petroleum's Macondo Well accident BOP failure - Research Paper Example The investigation team of BP revealed that requisite tests were not conducted properly by the engineering personnel because of which this disaster spread quite largely. Due to this devastating incident, the US federal government imposed a huge amount of fine upon BP. After the ocuurence of this incident, BOEMRE and Mineral Management Services (MMS) took strict initiatives and implemented various rules and regulations along with restructuring the working procedure so that this type of devastating incident might not occur in future. Table of Contents Abstract 2 Introduction 4 Thesis Statement 5 5 An Overview of Macondo Well Accident 5 Root Causes of the Macondo Well Disaster 9 Investigation Report about Macondo Well Accident 10 BOP Failure 12 Steps Taken By BP after BOP Failure 13 Conclusion 15 Works Cited 16 Appendix 1 17 Petroleum Industry Terms 17 Appendix 2 18 Introduction BP plc is regarded as one of the leading oil and gas multinational companies in the world. It operates in more than 80 nations all over the world. However, over the years, in its operations the company has faced certain obstacles especially related to oil spill incidents which have created a significant impact on the overall sustainability and reputation of the organisation. In this context, Deepwater Horizon oil spill incident was one of the infamous chapters in the history of BP. The oil spill incident took place in Gulf of Mexico in the year 2010. It is considered as one of the biggest accidents in the history of petroleum industry. Deepwater Horizon (DH) was an oil rig which was built by the ‘Hyundai Heavy Industries’ shipyard in South Korea and was delivered to BP in the year 2001. The rig was valued to be of multi-million dollars and it was considered as a 5th generation advanced technological ‘semi-submersible’ drilling rig. This rig comprised automatic drilling systems by which oil was generated into the wellbore of Macondo Prospect. This fully automatic dr illing machine consisted of 15,000 ‘PSI-rated BOP system’ and operated below the sea level at about 9000 ft. The rig had drilled well up to 35,055 feet, which took almost nine years. This entire drilling system was owned as well as operated by the Transocean Company under a mutual agreement with BP (Deepwater Horizon Study Group, â€Å"Final Report on the Investigation of the Macondo Well Blowout†). Thesis Statement The paper intends to investigate and analyze the Macondo well accident of BP Plc at Gulf of Mexico which caused continued oil spill for several days resulting in widespread damage to marine habitats as well as wildlife. An Overview of Macondo Well Accident Deepwater Horizon’s ‘Blowout Preventer (BOP)’ was one of the main factors regarding the Macondo disaster. The incidents surrounding Macondo disaster have been more visible to the society through reports prepared by BP and the National Commission of the United States. The US feder al government imposed a huge fine amounting to around 4.5 billion USD against BP to settle illicit charges brought against the company regarding the Deepwater Horizon disaster (Capaldo, â€Å"US Government Fines BP $4.5bn Over Deepwater Horizon Disaster†). This incident occurred on the evening of 20th April 2010 due to the release of hydrocarbon gas on Macondo well