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BP prepares to change well’s cap, then start plugging it

Reading: BP prepares to change well’s cap, then start plugging it

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In the race to control and kill the leaking oil well in the Gulf of Mexico before a tropical storm halts operations, BP is gambling that it can perform several complex technical maneuvers simultaneously.

The company plans to change caps on the gusher, a tricky task that could greatly improve the ability to capture the oil or perhaps even shut down the well — but that would permit oil to flow unabated during the switch. The company had planned to change the cap only after first connecting the well to a new ship at the site, the Helix Producer, which can siphon up to 25,000 barrels of oil a day. But with a window of calm weather forecast for the next week or so, BP has accelerated its plans, administration officials said Thursday.

This burst of activity comes as a relief well is nearing the blown-out borehole. BP and administration officials say that if the weather holds and all the technology works as planned, they could begin the process of permanently plugging the well within two weeks.

Continue Reading at WashingtonPost.

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