BP's Internal Investigation Deems Eight Factors Caused the Deepwater Horizon Disaster

[Nathanael]

After four months of internal investigation, BP has released the Deepwater Horizon Accident Report,, a 190-page treatise on the causes of the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion and subsequent oil leak.

The report states there were eight interrelated errors and failures which led to the offshore drilling disaster, which spilled over five million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico.

Link: http://www.energyboom.com/policy/bps-internal-investigation-deems-eight-factors-caused-deepwater-horizon-disaster

[indepat]

1. The top 8 reasons: 1 corporate culture, 2 corporate culture, 3-8 corporate culture x 6

That was so easy and obvious. ;)

[Nihil]

2. More information.

The BP report listed the main causes of the accident as:

- The cement and shoe track barriers - and in particular the cement slurry that
was used - at the bottom of the Macondo well failed to contain hydrocarbons
within the reservoir, as they were designed to do, and allowed gas and liquids
to flow up the production casing

- The results of the negative pressure test were incorrectly accepted by BP
and Transocean, although well integrity had not been established;

- Over a 40-minute period, the Transocean rig crew failed to recognise and act
on the influx of hydrocarbons into the well until the hydrocarbons were in the
riser and rapidly flowing to the surface;

- After the well-flow reached the rig it was routed to a mud-gas separator,
causing gas to be vented directly on to the rig rather than being diverted
overboard

- The flow of gas into the engine rooms through the ventilation system created
a potential for ignition which the rig’s fire and gas system did not prevent

- Even after explosion and fire had disabled its crew-operated controls, the
rig’s blow-out preventer on the sea-bed should have activated automatically to
seal the well. But it failed to operate, probably because critical components
were not working.

(http://www.theengineer.co.uk/bp-links-deepwater-horizon-disaster-to-bad-cement-job/1004786.article)