Marine Well Containment Company completes expanded containment system
The Marine Well Containment Company (MWCC) has announced the completion and delivery of its expanded containment system, bolstering well containment capabilities and response readiness for operators in the deepwater US Gulf of Mexico. The enhanced system builds on the equipment and technology put into place with MWCC’s interim containment system, made available in February 2011.
The containment system, which consists of equipment from the company’s interim and expanded systems, was built for use in deepwater depths of up to 10,000 ft. It has the capacity to contain up to 100,000 bbl/day and handle up to 200 million cu ft/day of gas. MWCC’s suite of containment equipment enables the company to mobilize and deploy well containment technology and equipment that can be adjusted to meet the unique requirements of a well control incident. The containment system includes two modular capture vessels (MCVs); three capping stacks; subsea umbilical, risers and flowlines (SURF) equipment; and additional ancillary equipment.
“The completion of the expanded containment system represents a major milestone for our company and a significant investment from industry,” Don Armijo, MWCC Chief Executive Officer, said. “Arrival of the full system underscores MWCC’s commitment to meet members’ needs and to provide industry-leading well containment equipment and services.”
The company’s three capping stacks include the subsea containment assembly, 15k psi capping stack (single ram) and the 10k psi capping stack (dual ram). These stacks vary in size and capabilities and will be utilized depending on specific incident factors.
MWCC’s SURF equipment is used to flow fluid from the capping stack to capture vessels on the surface. The company’s two MCVs, the Eagle Texas (MCV A) and the Eagle Louisiana (MCV B), are modified Aframax tankers outfitted with modular processing equipment designed to capture, process, store and offload liquids from a damaged well. Each MCV can process up to 50,000 bbl/day with 700,000 bbl of liquid storage capacity and can offload the liquids to shuttle tankers.
Designed to be flexible, adaptable and ready to be mobilized upon incident notification, MWCC’s containment system is available for use by members as well as non-members on a per well basis. MWCC will continue to make upgrades and enhancements to the containment system as necessary. The system will be maintained in a ready state and tested regularly to meet functionality and quality standards.
MWCC’s two shore base locations along the US Gulf Coast support the deployment of MWCC’s expanded containment system.
