[QUOTE=Kennebec Captain;92740]UWILD? If CG approves.[/QUOTE]
if they do then there is no bigger evidence they are on the take. That said, the appearance for far is that Shell might have dodged a cannon shell with where the KULLUK grounded. As long as there is no hidden rocks under the rig we don’t see in the photo then it is just possible that the bottom isn’t going to be torn to shreds. Will the USCG let the rig continue to work with badly stove in bottom? I would not swallow my dentures if they did but it would tell me that they take marching orders rather than give them.
Now what is this undisclosed damage on the DISCO that requires it to be drydocked again if it DIDN’T ground back in July in DH? Hmmm?
[QUOTE=Too bad steam is gone;92618]I spent 10 years running up to Valdez on tankers. One storm in 1992 our brand new anemometer was reading steady wind of 145 knots with gusts to 165. Three lows came together and luckily we were near Hinchenbrook so the seas were not massive like they can get up there. There was a photo of a MOC tanker going up a 100 foot wave in the Gulf of Alaska in the MEBA hall in Boston. It is a dangerous place to work.[/QUOTE]
You’re not kidding. I was on the [I]Overseas Juneau[/I] when, in Jan 1991 and we encountered a super doozy. Pretty much an eye opening experience, wouldn’t you say. BTW, do you happen to have a copy of the MOC tanker going up a 100 foot wave? It would be nice if you could post it. I’d like a copy to hang in my office. Must have been posted in Marine Officer Magazine but I missed it.
Maybe, would the vessel look like it does? I understand they had requirements on what type of vessel was needed but I don’t see any of the Fairmont rig towing tugs looking anything like the Aiviq. Who engineered the aiviq? Did they have experience towing rigs, towing in Alaskan type environments? Everything can look nice on paper and in view but that does not mean it is a functioning vessel for the work it is doing. That being said the Aiviq is a neat vessel was it the best suited to be towing the Kulluk?
[QUOTE=rshrew;92751]That being said the Aiviq is a neat vessel was it the best suited to be towing the Kulluk?[/QUOTE]
Really doesn’t matter now. None of us will have any input into this investigation, assignment of guilt or punishment, civil, punitive or otherwise. We can all read and learn and that is about the size of it. The managers still won’t listen because they STILL think they are smarter than the weather, history or physics.
One quick comment before the batteries are released. Do you really think CHOUEST would build something like this without conferring with their design people in Norway at Island Offshore or their Russian experts from the Arctic?
Now get out the pointy sticks and start skewering each other so i have something to laugh at.
AIVIQ is probably exactly what it appears to be: A fantastic state-of-the-art Norwegian designed and spec’d vessel that was built down in the bayou with extra care and attention to detail.
The only potential flaws in AIVIQ that I’ve heard about so far are: (1) possible poor fuel tank venting or access hatches that allowed ingress of water into the fuel; and (2) failure to be properly equipped with an Orville Hook.
I don’t know what she has for a tow winch or what is on it for wire. I have heard of experienced tug companies (you know who I mean) that have tugs with double drum winches, and use both tow wires with independent sets of chain bridles on higher risk offshore tows. I am inclined to think that AIVIQ must have a double drum winch and that for this tow across the Gulf of Alaska in mid-winter they should have been using both drums and both tow wires. A vessel that size and that expensive designed for working in remote arctic areas could, and should, have a lot of extra towing gear aboard, including a spare tow wire on a powered storage drum
As for the broken shackle, the shackle should be the weakest link in the towing gear. Much better to break a shackle than to part the tow wire. Its a lot easier to replace a shackle than a tow wire, especially when towing a manned barge with a crane.
Shell can confirm its Arctic-class drillship, The Kulluk, grounded on the southeast shoreline of Sitkalidak Island, Alaska, at approximately 9 p.m. local time on December 31, 2012, while under tow in heavy seas from Alaska to the U.S. port of Seattle, Washington State. There has been no loss of life and no significant injuries as a result of this incident and Shell is working hard with the relevant authorities to protect the maritime environment in the vicinity of the grounded vessel.
The grounding of the Kulluk is a maritime transportation incident and not a drilling incident. Operational and media responses are being managed through a unified response team, led by the U.S. Coastguard. Media information can be found via the following link: www.kullukresponse.com
Shell deeply appreciates the professional and effective response of the responders from the U.S. Coast Guard, Shell, Noble, Edison Chouest and many other organizations who worked together seamlessly at sea and under extreme weather conditions to control the vessel, rescue the crew on board, and prevent injury and environmental impact.
In the circumstances we faced over the last 4 days, we cannot underscore enough how significant it is to have weathered fierce winds and high seas with no more than two first aid cases.
The Kulluk successfully completed its role in supporting our 2012 Alaska exploration program several weeks ago and was en route to winter harbor, through waters off the southern coast of Alaska, when this incident occurred. We have already begun a review - working with our marine experts, partners and suppliers – of how this sequence of events, including the failure of multiple engines on the MV Aiviq (towing vessel) led to this incident. We intend to use lessons from that review to strengthen our maritime fleet operations, globally.
The incident did not involve our drilling operations, nor does it involve any possibility of crude oil release. Through our role in the Unified Incident Command, we quickly mobilized experts to respond to this situation. And, we can confidently say that the Shell emergency response assets and contingences that were deployed over the last four days represent the best available in the world.
As far as the Aiviq, I think the error likely was not the design so much as it was using a new vessel. Better to run a couple years, get the bugs out and the crew has a chance to learn how to operate efficiently. (edit) In the case of a specialized vessel that’s not practical.
The tow gear for sure is most often the weak link in any rough weather tow operation.
That and the voyage planning.
Reading c captains remarks about the area around the Trinity Island - I relieved Capt Doug at midnight en route from Seattle to Dutch one rough night and he told me to pass SW of Chirikof Island. He told me never pass NE in bad weather as it always rougher there. Next morning at 6 am I was SW like he told me but we were really in it with seas over the bow and I wondered what Doug would say. He came up, took a look around and said, Damn, think what it’s like on the other side!
looking at some of the few photos of the rig now but it appears that she is listing towards the beach rather than away from it which would tell me that unless the KULLUK is on the backside of an underwater hump she might be partially flooded already.
Either way, that is going to certainly complicate any salvage of the rig. Remember this is early January and unless the weather Gods are VERY kind, it is going to be very dicey work to deballast and lighten her enough to get her off. I sure wished I could see under those breakers!
looking at some of the few photos of the rig now but it appears that she is listing towards the beach rather than away from it which would tell me that unless the KULLUK is on the backside of an underwater hump she might be partially flooded already.
Or it might be the way the bottom is eroding away underneath.
K.C.
BTW How many of Shell’s arctic drilling rigs have NOT gone aground?
Royal Dutch Shell PLC (RDSA, RDSA.LN) and emergency responders are preparing to send a salvage crew to a company oil rig that ran aground in the Arctic, a company spokesman said Wednesday.
Cold weather and high waves had prevented the salvage crews from boarding the Kulluk, a drilling rig owned by Shell and operated by Noble Corp. (NE) that struck Sitkalidak Island, an uninhabited area about 300 miles southwest of Anchorage late Monday.
As of Tuesday, the weather had cleared enough that emergency responders would soon be able to board the Kulluk and assess whether the rig had suffered significant damage, Shell spokesman Scott Scheffler said.
“There’s a huge, drastic improvement compared with what we had seen,” Mr. Scheffler said. “Our hope is to get that salvage crew on the vessel.”
