Environment & Energy

unhappycamper

(60,364 posts) Tue Jan 1, 2013, 08:03 AM Jan 2013

Shell Oil Finally Corrals Unmanned Mobile Oil Drilling Rig In Gulf Of Alaska

http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2012/12/31/178657/shell-oil-drilling-vessel-is-adrift.html

Tow lines attached to Shell Oil drilling vessel in Gulf of Alaska
Posted on Monday, December 31, 2012
Lisa Demer | The Anchorage Daily News

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Update, 6:40 a.m.:

Tow lines were reconnected overnight from the Shell drill rig Kulluk to two support vessels in the Gulf of Alaska, according to Shell and the U.S. Coast Guard. The vessels are 19 miles southeast of Kodiak Island, according to a joint statement issued Monday morning by Shell, the Coast Guard and others.

The Kulluck is again under tow by the vessel Aiviq and another vessel, the tug Alert, said the statement, issued at 6:06 a.m.

Around 12:45 a.m., the statement said, the Alert "was able to secure the 400-foot line that was previously the tow line used by the Aiviq. The Alert successfully added tension to the line to test its ability to hold." The Aivik then reconnected its line to the Kulluk later in the morning, the statement said.

"Difficult weather conditions are anticipated to continue over the next several days. Unified Command is evaluating all potential options to further secure the vessel until the weather clears," the statement said.