The Case for Confidently Siting Facilities along the Sigsbee Escarpment in the Southern Green Canyon Area of the Gulf of Mexico: Summary and Conclusions from Integrated Studies

摘要

This paper summarizes the key conclusions and evidence thatrnenabled BP to confidently site facilities along the SigsbeernEscarpment. The conclusions arise from the results of a seriesrnof multidisciplinary studies. The thorough understanding ofrnthe following key aspects are clearly documented: geologicrnenvironment, current level of stability of the slope, timing ofrnpast slope failures, behavior of key past and future debrisrnflows, plausible natural and made-made trigger mechanismsrnwithin the life of the field, and annual probability ofrnoccurrences of slope instability.rnThe current high level of stability of key slopes in the vicinityrnof future facilities, combined with a lack of credible naturalrntrigger mechanisms within the life of field, and low annualrnprobability of occurrences of slope failures led to thernconclusion that the risks that geohazards pose to the chosenrnfield architectures for the Mad Dog and Atlantis field werernacceptable. Other areas of the field where such conclusionsrnare not valid have also been delineated.