Photographers: shoot the thick greasy surface residue in water affected by the Montara oil spill
- PTTEP profits slide as oil spill weighs
- PTTEP's fourth bid to plug Montara fails
- WWF warns of 'massive' Montara damage
- PTTEP keeps on working to plug its Montara well
- Montara is on course
- Garrett slams Montara claims
- Montara relief effort makes headway
- PTTEP to try again after plug bid fails
- Montara move
- Delay pushes back Montara relief bid
- PTTEP plodding along on Montara leak
- PTTEP setback at Montara
- 'Montara woes won't hit sales flows'
- PTTEP pays to scan Montara damage
- Third try at Montara
- PTTEP setback again at Montara
- Montara spill bill hits $5m
- Doubts emerge over Montara spill study
APPEA backs PTTEP's Montara action
The Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association (APPEA) acted today to quell growing public concern in Australia about the Montara oil spill, saying the group shares the community’s concern and frustration over the leak, but that a peer review suggested PTTEP's approach was "the safest and most effective" way to act.
Thailand’s PTTEP had to abandon its fourth attempt to plug the blown out wellbore at the Montara development over the weekend due to technical problems.
APPEA said that yesterday’s peer review concluded the current approach is the safest and most effective way of containing this serious incident on the basis of current operational circumstances and information available.
APPEA's stance is backed by Australia's federal Environment Minister, Peter Garrett, who told local media: "I'm advised ... that it does take three or four attempts on a matter that's as tricky and technically challenging as this to get the job done."
The next attempt to intercept and plug the leak is likely to happen later this week and may require a further attempt to intercept the target, PTTEP said today.
PTTEP's chief financial office Jose Martins said: “Yesterday we conducted a further review of current option with industry colleagues as part of our ongoing assessment of the approaches used in this complex and difficult task and to review the next steps in drilling the relief well."
Meanwhile, WWF Australia's director of conservation, Dr Gilly Llewellyn told Upstreamonline today that the Montara oil spill is unfolding to be a huge environmental disaster.
Nearly 10 weeks since the accident, the blown out well bore is still leaking, threatening a wide range of marine life according to the WWF.
Estimates for the amount of oil, gas and condensate leaking from the well have been put at almost 500,000 litres - 3145 barrels - to date.
PTTEP said just 300 to 400 barrels of oil per day is leaking from the damaged well bore, but the Department of Resources, Energy & Tourism told a Senate committee last week it believed up to 2000 bpd is being pumped into the sea.
One industry observer noted that based on PTTEP's estimates, the spill is the third-largest ever in Australian waters.
Australia's federal Resources Ministry has said it believes PTTEP's estimates are valid, adding that the higher estimate is based on flows if the well was in full production.