Breaking News--Another Oil Rig Explodes in the Gulf

[Korbin Dallas]

GRAND ISLE, La. – An offshore oil rig exploded in the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday, west of the site of the April blast that caused the massive oil spill.
A commercial helicopter company reported the blast around 9:30 a.m. CDT (7:30 a.m. PDT) Thursday, Coast Guard Petty Officer Casey Ranel said.

Seven helicopters, two airplanes and four boats were en route to the site, about 80 miles south of Vermilion Bay along the central Louisiana coast.

The Coast Guard said initial reports indicated all 13 crew members from the rig were in the water. One was injured, but there were no deaths.

The platform owned by Mariner Energy is in about 2,500 feet of water, the Coast Guard said, and was not currently producing.

About 206 million gallons of oil from an undersea well spilled into the Gulf after BP's Deepwater Horizon rig exploded April 20, killing 11 workers.
More details to come.
http://www.ocregister.com/articles/rig-264775-oil-mexico.html

[the white rabbit]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_YudI30ZGE

[DMac]

Mariner Energy Shares Plunge On Reports Of Explosion At A Company-Owned Platform (http://www.zerohedge.com/article/mariner-energy-shares-plunge-reports-company-owned-rig)


Update: the explosion is on a Mariner operating platform in the Vermillion 380 field. This is not a rig.



The description of the Vermillion 380 field from the company's 10-K

At year-end 2009 estimated proved reserves attributed to our Vermillion 380 field were 33.2 Bcfe, consisting of approximately 47% oil and NGLs and 53% natural gas. During 2008 and 2009, we drilled five wells and added additional production capacity on the “A” platform. Hurricane Ike damaged the structure with the rig on the platform, causing us to suspend drilling while underwater structural repairs were made. We brought the platform back on production at reduced rates until the facilities upgrade was finished. The platform is currently producing approximately 28 MMcfe per day. Our working interest in this block is 100%. Production at Vermillion 380 was approximately 1.1 Bcfe in 2009.




Biggest Loser From Mariner Explosion: With 10 Million Shares, John Paulson (http://www.zerohedge.com/article/biggest-loser-mariner-explosion-10-million-shares-john-paulson)


Below are the biggest holders of Mariner Energy stock. #1, with 10 million shares, is John Paulson who has bought the stock as part of a merger arb strategy with Apache. Other in the top 5 include Vanguard, Fidelity, Prudential, GMT Capital.

[the white rabbit]

This was done for BP so someone else will have to share the costs of the cleanup !!!!

[the white rabbit]

Oil sheen spreading from Gulf platform explosion
Coast Guard: a mile-long oil sheen spreading from site of burning Gulf platform off La. coast

.
Alan Sayre, Associated Press Writer, On Thursday September 2, 2010, 2:03 pm
NEW ORLEANS, La. (AP) -- The Coast Guard is saying that a mile-long oil sheen is spreading from the site off an offshore petroleum platform that exploded in the Gulf of Mexico off Louisiana.

The site of the explosion is west of where BP's massive spill occurred.

The Coast Guard said no one was killed Thursday in the explosion. The blast was spotted by a commercial helicopter flying over the site.

All 13 people aboard the rig were found floating in the water in survival gear.