The platform above houses four wells. There is a production facility that separates and measures the wells’ production. The gas and condensate are sold into a pipeline.

 

Visible at left is the

Although some people use the terms interchangeably, there is a big difference.

 

Drilling rigs are mobile units that drill and work on wells.

 

In the picture above, a jack up drilling rig is on

So that’s why the Eastern Gulf looks so interesting. Off Florida, there is a fairly broad shelf where operations would not be so expensive as in the LA and TX Deepwater. And there are onshore

Given the cost of Deepwater operations, only the largest, most promising prospects are likely to be drilled. Many of the active leases - colored green in the detail above - will expire without a

Another observation about Deepwater: there’s not much infrastructure. And it’s twice as far to shore as most Shelf locations.

 

Consequently, Deepwater economics are very tough. Fields must be big to