THE Deepwater Horizon debacle is starting to have a major impact around the world, one that even the Chinese are paying close attention to. Indeed, China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) has just started what is described as an intensive inspection programme on all its offshore projects.
According to the official newspaper, China Daily, CNOOC deputy general manager Zhou Shouwei has ordered a thorough examination of equipment on every rig and installation.
He said: “We are making every effort to make sure an oil spill does not happen.”
Shouwei said, too, that the company would be augmenting the safety of its facilities by upgrading the technological capabilities of equipment, particularly blowout preventers (BOPs) in service now and being installed in new-build deepwater drilling rigs now under construction.
He said CNOOC began developing new-generation systems seven years ago and had invested almost $73.2million in the quest.
Shouwei added that CNOOC had also decided to upgrade its deepwater diving equipment over the next five years to permit divers to work at depths of 1,500-2,000m. They are currently limited to about 800m.