BS: Massive leak for gas rig

Subject: BS: Massive leak for gas rig
From: Keith A of Hertford
Date: 27 Mar 12 - 03:16 AM

A rig off Scotland has an uncontrolled venting of gas tha will take a long time to stop.
A sheen of liquid gas (?) is reported on the surrounding sea.
Nearby platforms have been evacuated.
The gas, mostly methane is twenty times worse than CO2 as a greenhouse gas.
A two-mile air and sea exclusion zone was imposed around the Elgin and the connected Rowan Viking drilling rig 150 miles off Aberdeen.

Rescued personnel said yesterday the sea was "boiling and bubbling" with escaping gas, indicating a subsea leak under the Elgin.

Last night, Total had called in a Texan team to cap the well and contain the leak.

Subject: RE: BS: Massive leak for gas rig
From: Richard Bridge
Date: 27 Mar 12 - 05:19 AM

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/energy/oilandgas/9168645/Exclusion-zone-put-around-Totals-leaking-North-Sea-well

Subject: RE: BS: Massive leak for gas rig
From: Rob Naylor
Date: 27 Mar 12 - 08:58 AM

Keith A : A sheen of liquid gas (?) is reported on the surrounding sea.

The stuff escaping here is gas condensate or liquid natural gas, which is a low-density mix of hydrocarbon liquids, rather than a gas as such.

Some of it will evaporate and form a true gas. The rest of it will sit on the sea surface in liquid form, and will probably (being very light fractions) also evaporate over a somewhat longer period.