Why in the hell is BP trying to shut off the well?

[mhatrw]

There is obviously some damage to the pipeline below the surface.

They finally got tight cap on the well and now they want to risk fucking it up?

Why not just continue to collect the oil using the tight cap until the relief wells are completed?

[Abq_Sarah]

1. Perhaps because they are under pressure

To cap the well?

[LisaL]

2. I don't think anyone would demand they cap it if they said

it might make the situation worse.

[Abq_Sarah]

12. yeah, I think they would

The majority of calls, particularly in the beginning, were for the well to be capped. There were a lot of people outraged at the thought that BP might direct the oil to vessels and make a "profit" from it.

In the end, it may actually be safer to release pressure via a fully functioning well in the same unit.

[TheWraith]

19. Are you kidding? Have you looked around DU? Any mass media?

All that there is is people screaming to cap the well, and any delay is fodder for conspiracy theories.

[LisaL]

20. Of course everybody rightly demands that BP stops the oil from gashing.

That's why BP was drilling the two relief wells. BP has been saying all alone that relief wells are the permanent solution.

[Statistical]

21. Which will take another 3-4 weeks to complete unless delayed. n/t

[Denzil_DC]

3. "Why not just continue to collect the oil using the tight cap until the relief wells are completed?"

If the weather kicks up rough, they'll have to abandon capture temporarily and move the ships out of there.

If the new cap will hold and not compromise the bore integrity, even if capture's suspended then no oil leaks.

[mhatrw]

4. This decision model is sorely fucked up if there is even a 10% chance that this won't work.

[Statistical]

15. Why?

The permanent solution either way is the relief well.

If the cap holds then the don't need to worry about continuous 24 hour capture operations and risk of hurricanes (which means capture amount drops to 0 entire time).

[mhatrw]

23. And if the cap doesn't hold? n/t

[Skink]

5. They are then free to use the relief well as there next producer.

this must be the biggest find in half a century.

[SammyWinstonJack]

6. +1 nt

[Curmudgeoness]

9. My understanding is that the relief well is being drilled to

plug up this well for good. At that point, this particular well will be filled with cement and abandoned. The relief wells are not intended to produce oil. That does not mean that they would leave this whole area alone---I am sure they are salivating to get a good well into that oil reservoir.

[SoCalDem]

14. and once it's "closed" they will be able to fudge the numbers

:grr:

[Statistical]

16. Nope. Relief well is too small, too slanted, and not designed for production.

Right now it is very close to the primary well.

Plus the cap is only temporary. It might last a year, or a month, or a week, or might start leaking tomorrow.

The only permanent solution is a relief well.

[Dr Morbius]

7. I think they're talking about closing the vents, not shutting down the well.

There is still oil coming out the vents. If they close the vents, all the oil will go through the cap (in theory, anyway). This will generate more pressure on the cap, of course, and so they're being very careful to be sure the cap is going to hold before they close or "shut down" those vents.

Now, that's my understanding based on what I've heard. You may have heard something more recently than myself; this is what I heard at 8:00 this morning.

[Statistical]

17. The vents are completely closed now. n/t

[slackmaster]

8. They're not. At this moment they are trying choking off the flow to see if the setup holds pressure

Take a 'lude or something.

[mhatrw]

11. So I should take drugs because BP has it all under control?

Thanks, Aldous Huxley.

[sharp_stick]

10. They're just testing it

if the pressure increases it means the bore isn't damaged and oil isn't leaking out into the rockbed. If the pressure doesn't climb enough it means there is damage and they will continue to collect into the ships as before.

[Statistical]

13. Just a couple weeks ago there was outrage that BP was capturing oil.

Cap well = bad
Capture oil = bad.

People saying BP was allowing well to spill so they could capture all that oil.

Just be happy it is capped temporarily.

The permanent solution is and always has been the relief well.

[spanone]

18. on pbs today they said the relief well was all but done

who the f*ck do you believe?

[mhatrw]

22. Why is it that a nobody like me could see this was a bad idea from the start,

but the Brownies (ostensibly) in charge let BP risk rupturing the whole well structure by running this test for over 72 hours now?