BP Oil Well Cap Test Begins

More than two months after the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion that caused an ongoing flow of oil in the Gulf of Mexico, BP remains deeply involved in efforts to contain the spill.

In the latest update on this situation, BP is presently running a vital cap test on the oil well responsible for the massive oil efflux.

This test - which focuses on the capping system recently placed on the well’s opening - got underway on 14 July 2010 and potentially could last until 16 July. Its start had been delayed on account of US governmental concerns over the impact that it could have on the oil well but as things stand, the oil well is now been monitored every six hours.

Oil Well Cap

Ultimately, if the tests indicate that closing the oil well cap could cause the well to deteriorate further, the cap might end up being used in a different way, helping siphon the oil to vessels waiting above it.

The cap tests see experts looking into a number of different factors, such as seismic activity, temperature fluctuations and pressure. The presence of high pressure would indicate that no more oil is flowing out of the well, while if the pressure’s low, the inference would be that the oil had found a new way of escaping.

According to BP itself, a low pressure situation would prompt the valves that feature within the capping mechanism to be kept open.

Oil Well Spill

Since the start of the oil well spill, immense damage has been wreaked on the local environment - with pollution across hundreds of kilometres of coastline – while as a result of it, no deepwater drilling is presently allowed in the area, as per US President Barack Obama.

According to estimates, the oil well continues to emit the equivalent of 60,000 barrels of oil into the sea every day.

The sheer scale of the disaster makes it the largest oil spill  ever to have taken place in US waters.

See also:

US Oil Spill - BP's Louisiana Plan

US Oil Spill Effects Disastrous for Marine Life

BP Attempts US Oil Spill Clean-Up