History
NameAtlantis
OwnerBP
Operator
Port of registry United States
Builder
Laid down21 June 2004
Launched17 August 2007
Acquired17 August 2007
Maiden voyageAugust 2006
In serviceOctober 2007
Identification
StatusOperational at 27°11′43″N 90°01′37″W / 27.195278°N 90.026944°W / 27.195278; -90.026944
Notes[1]
General characteristics
Class and typeABS: A1, floating offshore installation
Tonnage35,663 GT 88,826 DWT
Length129.07 m (423.5 ft)
Beam116.1 m (381 ft)
Draught26 m (85 ft)
Depth52 m (171 ft)
Capacity
Crew60 berths
Notes[1]

Atlantis PQ is a BP and BHP joint venture semi-submersible oil platform on permanent location over the Green Canyon Atlantis Oil Field in deepwater Gulf of Mexico, 190 mi (310 km) south of New Orleans. The "PQ" identifies the platform as being a production facility with crew quarters.[2]

The vessel's hull was designed by GVA and built by Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering (DSME) in Okpo, South Korea. Its topsides modules were built in Morgan City, Louisiana with hull integration in Ingleside, Texas.[3]

Operating in depths of more than 2,100 metres (6,900 ft), Atlantis was the deepest moored semi-submersible platform in the world when it was installed.

Food & Water Watch lawsuit

As a result of the 2010 explosion of the semi-submersible Deepwater Horizon drilling rig and the subsequent oil spill, informants within BP came forward with allegations that safety practices at Atlantis PQ were flawed. Specifically, allegations have been laid against the plans and specs used in its construction, maintenance, and operation. Kenneth Abbott, a former BP contractor, reported that up to 89 percent of the engineering plans used to build and operate the installations were never authenticated by even BP engineers for safety and stability, and that over 95 percent of the plans for the underwater welds were never verified. Food & Water Watch, a US-based consumer interest group, filed a complaint with the US district court requesting an injunction to stop production on Atlantis PQ until these matters have been investigated.[4][5]

In August 2014, the case against BP Atlantis was dismissed by a U.S. circuit court. U.S. District Judge Lynn N. Hughes stated "BP never misrepresented -- much less knowingly distorted what it was doing,", finding that the case was ultimately about "paperwork wrinkles" instead of engineering shortcuts, adding [Abbott and the environmentalists] "have not blown a whistle," he said. "They have blown their own horn."[6]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "ABS Record: Atlantis PQ". American Bureau of Shipping. 3 February 2010. Retrieved 30 May 2010.
  2. ↑ Bardex (January 8, 2003). "Bardex To Moor Atlantis PQ". Rigzone. Retrieved 20 May 2010.
  3. ↑ Sharon H. Fitzgerald (March 21, 2007). "Texas Tea Flows Well in Coastal Bend". Business Images Coastal Bend. Retrieved 25 May 2010.
  4. ↑ Driver, Anna (2010-05-17). "U.S. Regulators Sued Over BP's Atlantis Platform". Reuters. Houston, Texas. Archived from the original on 2016-01-09. Retrieved 18 May 2010.
  5. ↑ Michael Williams (16 May 2010). "Deepwater Horizon's Blowout, Part 1". 60 Minutes (Interview: video). Interviewed by Scott Pelley. CBS. Retrieved 18 May 2010.
  6. ↑ "BP Atlantis $256 Billion Whistle-Blower Case Dismissed". Bloomberg News.

Further reading

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