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Home Front Economy
Gulf of Mexico output still at only half capacity
2008-10-07
Nearly half the production from the biggest US oil and natural gas region remains shut down in the wake of hurricanes Gustav and Ike, which swept through the Gulf of Mexico last month. However, the Department of Energy said high petrol prices caused by the disruption should subside in the next few weeks as the refineries and market conditions returned to normal. Many companies used the shutdowns for maintenance work, which also affected supplies and raised prices.

The damage was not confined to production platforms in the gulf, which produces 20 per cent of US oil and natural gas, as several pipelines and processing facilities onshore were damaged. Regulators estimate that 48.2 per cent of oil production in the gulf and 44.6 per cent of natural gas production remains shut.

The hurricanes destroyed 52 offshore platforms and four drilling rigs, while 29 platforms and one rig suffered extensive damage and 33 platforms moderate damage. Six gas transmission pipelines were damaged. The closure of 15 refineries, responsible for about 20 per cent of US refined product, also hit supplies, as it can take two weeks to check all machinery and restart.
Posted by:Steve White

#2  I was diver and piledriver for 10 years, anything over 250' gets real expensive. Anything over 400' has to be done as a saturation dive. And thats the big money. Basically you and a crew live under pressure for a month at a time. It takes a while to get into the business though. About 3 years until you are doing any mixed gas dives. Starts with about 6 months of school (720 hours) to get your certificate. Then a year or two as a dive tender, then shallow dives, then deeper mixed gas dives, then the big money stuff. But its a great career for a young guy or gal. You should plan on traveling a lot, that's why I went back to school, but you can make a very nice living at it, as it will lead you into field supervision quite early.
Posted by: bigjim-ky   2008-10-07 10:46  

#1  A limiting factor in restoring capacity is availability of deep sea divers and support boats. Lots of underwater damage inspections and repairs to be done to platforms and pipelines. In 400' of water (or more - lots more!) even a small task is difficult. So, you adventurous, physically fit (and kind of masochistic or suicidal) folks who are looking for a good-paying (if a bit erratic) job opportunity .....
Posted by: Glenmore   2008-10-07 07:52  

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