BP adopts new safety standards

Associated Press

ATLANTA

A year after it capped its out-of-control well in the Gulf of Mexico, oil giant BP PLC said Friday it is taking new steps to improve the reliability of the cement used to seal its wells and the fail-safe devices used to prevent blowouts.

The U.S. government welcomed the voluntary measures announced by the British firm — which seemed to target shortcomings addressed in several investigations of the disaster — but also noted that it already has established what it believes are strong safety and environmental standards that all operators are required to meet in order to operate in deep waters.

Eleven men were killed when the Deepwater Horizon rig exploded off Louisiana on April 20, 2010, leading to the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history. The well was capped July 15, 2010, and permanently sealed from the bottom two months after that.

BP said that with regard to its drilling operations in the Gulf in the future it will:

Require that one of its engineers or an independent third-party monitor conduct lab testing of the cement used to seal its deepwater wells. It will provide the results to government officials.

Require extra precautions be taken with blowout preventers used on rigs it leases to drill its wells. The measures involve using blowout preventers with extra shearing devices that would cut through drill pipe and seal a well in the event of a mishap.

Include in its oil-spill response plan information about enhanced response measures based on lessons learned from the Deepwater Horizon disaster.