StatoilHydro Tracks Oil Slick in the North Sea
The oil slick from the Statfjord oil spill on Dec. 12 is moving toward the northeast. According to StatoilHydro's calculations, it has reached the Snorre field in the North Sea.
Two vessels have been observing the oil slick during the night. The observations confirm that the slick is moving toward the northeast. An airplane from the Norwegian Coastal Administration will pass over the area, some 20 kilometers northeast of the Statfjord field, in the morning of Dec. 13.
The last observations from airplanes and vessels in the area Wednesday afternoon showed that the size of the oil slick was 23 square kilometers.
StatoilHydro's calculations suggest that the oil slick is dissolving and will not reach the coast. The company's experts have therefore decided not to apply chemical dispersants to the oil slick.
The action management sticks to the primary goal of monitoring the area continuously and implementing mechanical clean-up measures once the weather permits.
Unchanged Weather During the night, the weather conditions have remained unchanged in the North Sea. There are near gale conditions in the area with waves reaching heights between four and five meters.
A meteorologist from Storm Weather Center is monitoring the weather conditions on a continuous basis from StatoilHydro's emergency organization in Bergen. The last weather forecasts suggest that an improvement of the conditions can be expected during the night of Friday at the earliest.
Under the prevailing weather conditions, however, the likelihood of the slick reaching the coast is now considerably reduced.
Vessels in Place The rescue and recovery vessels Havila Troll and Havila Runde are monitoring the situation and will keep track of the oil slick movements. Two other vessels, Stril Pioner and Far Star, are expected to arrive to the relevant area in the North Sea in the morning. In addition, four tugboats are mobilized for towing of oil booms.
Midday on Dec. 13 the vessel Edda Fonn will arrive on the field with a remote-operated vehicle (ROV) on board. Once the weather permits, the ROV will be used for examinations of the loading buoy and oil hose used during the loading of oil to the tanker Navion Britannia.
All vessels that take part in the action will make observations related to the environment and bird-life. Experts from SINTEF will start bird-life observations Thursday morning.
- Falcon Oil Declares Commercial Flow Test Results for Shenandoah Well
- UK Oil Regulator Publishes New Emissions Reduction Plan
- Japan Failing to Meet Corporate Demand for Clean Power: Amazon
- PetroChina Posts Higher Annual Profit on Higher Production
- McDermott Settles Reficar Dispute
- Macquarie Strategists Expect Brent Oil Price to Grind Higher
- US, SKorea Launch Task Force to Stop Illicit Refined Oil Flows into NKorea
- Russian Navy Enters Warship-Crowded Red Sea Amid Houthi Attacks
- Pennsylvania County Joins List of Local Govts Suing Big Oil over Climate
- USA Commercial Crude Oil Inventories Increase
- Equinor Makes Discovery in North Sea
- Standard Chartered Reiterates $94 Brent Call
- India Halts Russia Oil Supplies From Sanctioned Tanker Giant
- DOI Announces Proposal for Second GOM Offshore Wind Auction
- Centcom, Dryad Outline Recent Moves Around Red Sea Region
- PetroChina Set to Receive Venezuelan Oil
- Czech Conglomerate to Buy Major Stake in Gasnet for $917MM
- US DOE Offers $44MM in Funding to Boost Clean Power Distribution
- Oil Settles Lower as Stronger Dollar Offsets Tighter Market
- UK Grid Operator Receives Aid to Advance Rural Decarbonization
- Chinese Mega Company Makes Major Oilfield Discovery
- VIDEO: Missile Attack Kills Crew Transiting Gulf of Aden
- Norway Regulator Blasts Proposal to Halt New Oil and Gas Permits
- Chinese Mega Company Makes Another Major Oilfield Discovery
- What Is the Biggest Risk to Offshore Oil and Gas Personnel in 2024?
- Vessel Sinks in Red Sea After Missile Strike
- Exxon Rights in Stabroek Do Not Apply to Hess Merger with Chevron: Hess
- Analysts Reveal Latest Oil Price Outlook Following OPEC+ Cut Extension
- Equinor Makes Discovery in North Sea
- Standard Chartered Reiterates $94 Brent Call