Slick forming in and around Montara field: leaking occurred near chartered Seadrill jack-up West Atlas.
PTTEP plodding along on Montara leak
PTTEP will make a second pass to intercept the leaking well in the Montara field tomorrow, after initial attempts were blocked by hard rocks under the seabed.
The damaged well, which blew out on 21 August, has been leaking hydrocarbons into the Timor Sea for seven weeks.
Work continued today on the salvage operations after a fresh delay last Friday.
The sidetrack well being drilled by Seadrill’s jack-up West Triton to intercept the leak encountered a “very hard, deep rock formation” last week, slowing the work progress, PTTEP said.
The drilling team onboard West Triton will use a rotary steerable assembly to drill up to 2738 metres within several metres of the calculated target, before attempting the second pass.
The aim is to intersect a piece of steel casing 25 centimetres in diameter, 2.6 kilometres below the seabed.
Environmental groups claim the isolated area affected by the Montara leak is home to a number of endangered species.
Indonesia has dispatched a team of officials last week to monitor Australia's response to the oil spill, saying it feared the contamination could harm the country’s marine life.