A group of the world“s largest oil companies, including Exxon Mobil Corp, Royal Dutch Shell, ConocoPhillips and Chevron Corp, are to invest $1 billion on developing a new system of oil spill localisation for the Gulf of Mexico, Reuters reports, citing a declaration by the group.
The system they plan to establish will function at a depth of 3,000 metres, twice the depth of the oil spill from the Macondo borehole.
According to preliminary information, the system can collect up to 100 thousand barrels of oil daily. The system can be mobilized within 24 hours in various weather conditions. The system will consist of special underwater equipment, with collectors and pipelines to transport oil to tankers.
The companies of the group will organize a non-commercial organization, the Marine Well Containment Company, in the near future. The company is concentrating on clearing the spill in the Gulf of Mexico rather than developing new technologies for localising such spills in the future.
The BP platform Deepwater Horizon sank in the Gulf of Mexico near the Louisiana coast on April 22nd, after a 36-hour fire and an explosion killing 11 people. The oil spill harmed the states of Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Florida and Texas.
According to BP, the cost of clearing the spill is reaching $4 billion. This sum includes clearing the area, building additional boreholes, grants to neighbouring countries and lawsuit payments. The company has already had 116,000 lawsuits filed against it and paid $207 million to deal with 67,500 of them.
