BP removes old containment cap from well

BP removes old containment cap from well

New Orleans, Louisiana (CNN) -- Crews removed a containment cap on the ruptured underwater well in the Gulf of Mexico, BP said Saturday afternoon. The next move will be placing a better-fitting one on the well.

Live video Saturday afternoon showed robots removing bolts from the apparatus so that the new cap can be positioned. Oil was again flowing freely during the transition. About 8,000 to 9,000 barrels are still being recovered per day by a vessel.

BP senior Vice President Kent Wells said the sealing cap operation is expected to take four to seven days, with favorable weather helping the process along. In upcoming weeks, there will be an increase in the current oil containment work.

"As we start to ramp up the additional containment capacity, we should see less and less flow," said Wells, who will provide an update on the operation later Saturday.

If successful, the effects of the containment cap operation could halt the oil gusher that started April 20 after a deadly explosion on the Deepwater Horizon rig in the Gulf of Mexico.

Officials have said such a fix would be temporary, and the permanent solution would still be completion of a relief well. There are two relief wells under construction, with one expected to be completed in August.


Source

1. Switch will take 4 to 7 days during which oil will flow unimpeded
   

So for 4-7 days Oil will be coming out more than usual. It's just a temporary fix the article mentioned. They are also going to bring in something called The Helix Producer which is a Oil Recovery Vessle.

Well, I guess we just wait and see what happens. And hope for the best.

[edit on 10-7-2010 by Oozii]

Kinda makes you wonder, doesn't it? If they can change the cap whenever they feel like it, why didn't they change it 2 months ago? Ohhh I see. so they can let it gush 200,000 barrels a day for a week

Apparently there aren't many competent mechanics on site. I realize they are doing it with robos a mile down, but 'cmon now... 4-7 days? A competent team of mechanics would take no more than 2 hours from removal to installation (even with robos a mile down). It has to be engineers, since they take at least 10 times as long to do anything a mechanic does. Us wrenchmonkeys still use the KISS principle.
Give a good ironworker a bag of bolts, 2 spuds, and a deep sea suit, and they could be out of, and into the boat in 2 hours

Originally posted by OuttaTime
Apparently there aren't many competent mechanics on site. I realize they are doing it with robos a mile down, but 'cmon now... 4-7 days? A competent team of mechanics would take no more than 2 hours from removal to installation (even with robos a mile down). It has to be engineers, since they take at least 10 times as long to do anything a mechanic does.

Let's hope it's not these engineers.

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reply to post by graceunderpressure


and they paid good money for their college education. It makes you wonder what they were thinking. Let's hope they're not on the BP team!

Originally posted by graceunderpressure

Originally posted by OuttaTime
Apparently there aren't many competent mechanics on site. I realize they are doing it with robos a mile down, but 'cmon now... 4-7 days? A competent team of mechanics would take no more than 2 hours from removal to installation (even with robos a mile down). It has to be engineers, since they take at least 10 times as long to do anything a mechanic does.

Let's hope it's not these engineers.

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[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/b1663ac32697.jpg[/atsimg]

Lol, dang thats just amazing.

Lets not jinx them.