Offshore Oil Rigs

We have the capacity to locate oil deep below the ocean floor. Sometimes very large oil reserves are found very deep in the ocean bed. To get to the oil and use it, huge drilling rigs are built to provide a platform for drills to be fixed to. The drills can drill through rock on the sea floor and give us access to huge oil reserves. The platform can house workers, machinery and drills needed to drill oil and natural gas wells into the ocean floor.

Oil platforms can be located far out in the ocean. The capability of drilling in deeper and deeper waters is becoming more and more feasible every day. Currently, we can access oil reservoirs about five miles down from the ocean’s surface. Helicopters carry workers to and from the oil platform. Cranes lift and lower supplies from ships to the platform. The drill is made of thirty-three foot long pipes pieced together to get to the depth of the ocean floor. A drill bit is located at the end of the pipes. All of the drilling equipment is housed in a steel tower known as the derrick. Most oil platforms are equipped with fireproof life boats and living quarters with fireproof walls for its workers. Since fires and explosions are not unheard of on oil rigs, workers are sometimes housed in floating living quarters away from the rig itself.

Oil rigs have to be built to be extremely tough. They must be able to withstand super high winds and a continuous pounding of waves. Engineers monitor and repair all parts of the oil rig night and day. They check for cracks and parts that may have been weakened, especially after storms or a hurricane. Any parts that become rusty or loose could mean disaster. The safety of all the workers is in their hands. They make sure that any excess gas that cannot be used is burned off to reduce the amount of explosion risk around and under the oil platform. Fireboats are always nearby, ready to extinguish any fires that may erupt, with thousands of gallons of water per minute.

Life on an oil platform can be tough for workers. They are exposed to high winds, dangerous conditions and harsh weather. The work itself can be extremely hard, physically, and mentally can be tough because workers are usually required to live on the rig for weeks at a time. Roustabouts are workers that keep everything running smoothly around the drilling area. Roughnecks are more highly trained to work the drill itself. Roughnecks add pipe to the drill when needed and make repairs as they go. People work on the rig night and day to keep things running smoothly and safely.

All oil rigs have a team of highly skilled divers permanently on call. Divers are responsible to the erection of the rig during production. They are then responsible for monitoring all of the underwater components of the oil platform. They are required to make repairs to pipes, cables and the underlying structures of the rig.

About the Author: Mickey Horn is the Executive VP of Investor Relations of Western Pipeline Corporation. Western Pipeline Corp specializes in identifying, acquiring and developing existing, producing reserves on behalf of its individual clients.