On June 1, 2011, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE) issued a notice to Gulf of Mexico Outer Continental Shelf Region (GOMR) lease and pipeline right-of-way (ROW) holders on reporting hurricane and tropical storm effects. Specifically, the recent notice, designated NTL No. 2011-G01(1), requires four reports, as appropriate:
- Evacuation and Production curtailment statistic report – partially evacuated platforms are not considered evacuated
- Facility shut-in reports – including facilities that are partially shut-in
- Facility damage reports – including platforms, rigs and pipelines
- Pollution reports – facility discharged or continues to discharge oil during or as a result of the event
The Evacuation and Production curtailment statistic report and the Facility shut-in report overlap in subject matter. They differ in that the first report is general and requires overall company statistics (number of facilities evacuated or not evacuated, overall production shut-in); the second report is specific, requiring statistics platform by platform. Facility damage reports are to be submitted as soon as the information becomes available. Other reports are to be submitted daily as long as the condition exists. Reports may be submitted by e-mail or through the BOEMRE GOMR internet-based Permitting and Reporting System (eWell). Although the notice outlines the specific information and instructions required when the transmission is by e-mail, BOEMRE GOMR strongly encourages use of eWell to transmit the required data.
The eWell system, described in NTL No. 2007-G15 (2), was developed to increase efficiency of well permitting and reporting transactions between OCS lessees and operators and the GOMR by both reducing the time (and cost) required to process data and to reduce input errors. The system is designed to simplify submittal of multiple reports and subsequent daily reports. Interested lessees and operators and pipeline ROW holders must apply to BOEMRE GOMR for access to the eWell system.
[1] BOEMRE, Hurricane and Tropical Storm Effects Reports, NTL No. 2011-G01, http://www.gomr.boemre.gov/homepg/regulate/regs/ntls/2011NTLs/11-G01.pdf (last visited June 10, 2011).
[2] BOERME, eWell Permitting and Reporting System, NTL- No. 2007-G15, http://www.gomr.boemre.gov/homepg/regulate/regs/ntls/2007NTLs/07-g15.pdf (last visited June 10, 2011).