Working for America’s Energy Future and a Quality Environment

Working for America’s Energy Future and a Quality Environment
by Chris Oynes, Regional Director, Gulf of Mexico, Minerals Management Service
 
The Minerals Management Service (MMS) Gulf of Mexico OCS Regional Office strives to be a showcase of careful, safe and efficient administration of the nation’s offshore oil and gas and other mineral resources. Only close cooperation and consultation with state and local governments and the wide array of industry and other constituencies that exist can make this possible. The MMS’s Gulf Regional Office has responsibility for OCS oil and gas and some other mineral matters from offshore Texas to Maine, although most activity is concentrated in the Gulf of Mexico.
 
The offshore oil and gas industry in the federal part of the Gulf of Mexico is truly a large and multifaceted group. In October 2004, 105 exploration wells were being drilled in Gulf waters and 33 of these were in water depths of 1,000 feet or greater. Currently, there are approximately 4,000 producing platforms, of which about 1,962 are major platforms (954 of these are staffed by personnel). About 152 companies are active in the Gulf.
 
These are exciting times in the Gulf of Mexico. The Gulf’s contribution to the nation’s energy supply is truly remarkable. Production in the federal portion of the Gulf OCS amounted to 23% of the nation’s natural gas production (just under 5 trillion cubic feet) and about 30% of the nation’s oil production (570 million barrels) in 2002. Deepwater production has been rising rapidly. Three lease sales are planned in 2005-one each in the Western, Central and Eastern Gulf regions.
 
Excitement in the Gulf focuses on three areas. First is deepwater. In 2004 the MMS released the report Deepwater Gulf of Mexico 2004: America’s Expanding Frontier OCS Report MMS 2004-021) (http://www.gomr.mms.gov/homepg/whatsnew/techann/
2004/2004-021.pdf) on deepwater activity. The report addressed the intense interest in the oil and gas potential in the deepwater tracts in the Gulf of Mexico. About 14 new deepwater projects were planned to start production in 2004 in the Gulf of Mexico. The use of advanced technology is a marvel in the OCS program. In November 2003, ChevronTexaco drilled an exploratory well in a world record water depth of 10,011 feet of water on Alaminos Canyon Block 951. The MMS approved in 2002 the first use in the United States of synthetic (fiber) mooring systems. The MMS has previously released an environmental assessment of the effect of deepwater exploration, development and production. Many changes and new analysis are under way.
 
A second area is ultra-deepwater (5,000 feet and greater), where a number of discoveries have recently been made. In October 2004, exploratory wells were being drilled by ChevronTexaco in 9,226 feet of water (AC 815), BP in 7,591 feet (WR 724) and Dominion in 7,946 feet (DC 445). A third area of excitement is the deep shelf. This area on the shelf is in shallow water depth but lying below 15,000 feet geologically has hardly been explored. MMS is offering incentives to look for deep natural gas in this area.
 
The MMS always remains concerned that OCS operations need to conducted in a safe manner. Related to this, the MMS issued final revisions in its drilling regulations in March 2003 and issued new final regulations concerning training of OCS workers. Through its inspection program, the MMS conducted more than 16,000 safety and environmental inspections of offshore oil and gas activity last year. An environmental assessment of the effects of seismic activity was recently issued.
 
The MMS conducts an extensive environmental studies program in the Gulf of Mexico, having sponsored more than 220 environmental studies in the Gulf of Mexico and costing over $130 million, to assess the effects that oil and gas drilling and production may have on the marine, coastal and human environments. Recent reports have focused on deep sea life, deep spills, sperm whales and economic effects. An award was made on biotechnology research. A contract to collect ocean current data with Mexico was issued.
 
In the Eastern Gulf of Mexico, comparatively few leases exist (146) but much activity is planned. Twenty exploration plans have been filed on leases issued as a result of Sale 181 held in December 2001. Eight exploration wells have been drilled already. In the Eastern Gulf, lease sale 189 was held in December 2003. A final environmental impact statement on Sales 189 and 197 was released on May 30, 2003.
 
Several proposals to import LNG into the United States through a regassification plant located out in the ocean in the Gulf of Mexico have been filed.
 
There is no offshore oil and gas activity off the Atlantic seaboard. The last remaining 8 leases in existence offshore North and South Carolina were relinquished back to the government in November 2000. No Atlantic lease sales have been held since 1983. The last exploratory well was drilled in 1984.
 
The MMS Gulf of Mexico OCS Region Office’s role in all this activity is substantial. By law, the MMS must approve every exploration well, every production proposal and the structural design of every platform as well as every pipeline, and it must issue literally dozens of other approvals for the design and operation of facilities and measurement of product. It conducts extensive environmental review of proposed projects. MMS also conducts thousands of inspections every year to ensure operational safety and protection of the marine, coastal and human environment.
 
These immense tasks are the responsibilities of the 600 employees in the MMS Gulf Region Office and require their professional training in a host of disciplines. To accomplish this mission, we employ petroleum engineers, geophysicists, geologists, marine biologists, oceanographers, other environmental scientists, offshore inspectors and computer personnel among other professionals.
 
The Gulf of Mexico OCS Region (GOMR) is one of three regional offices of the Minerals Management Service (MMS), an agency that manages more than a billion offshore acres and collects about $10 billion dollars in mineral revenues annually. From the days of its predecessor agencies and the creation of MMS in 1982,