Guidance for Complying with BOEM NTL No. 2010N06 on Worst Case Discharge for Offshore Wells
Society of Petroleum Engineers
September 22, 2010
Chair: Tim Magner, Chevron
Committee Members
Jonathan Harris, Apache Corporation
Ted Skinner, Marathon
James Wells, ATP Oil & Gas Corporation
Donny Torres, Newfield Exploration
Ron Harvey, Century Exploration New Orleans, Inc.
Stuart Hara, Shell
Curt Killinger, Challenger Minerals Inc. (CMI) /
Transocean
John Leonard, Stone Energy
Ashley Africa, Woodside Energy
Connie Bargas, Cobalt International Energy, L.P.
Akhil Datta-Gupta, Texas A&M University
Dan Smallwood, ConocoPhillips
Tad Patzek, University of Texas
Phillip Bednarz, ExxonMobil
Richard Hughes, Louisiana State University
Martin Wolff, Hess Corporation
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Table of Contents
Disclaimer...................................................................................................................................................... 3
Background ................................................................................................................................................... 3
Calculation Procedure ................................................................................................................................... 5
Step 1: Determine Uncontrolled Flow for each hole section ................................................................... 5
Step 2: Determine the Time Required to Drill a Relief Well ..................................................................... 7
Step 3: Provide a Rate Profile for Production Decline .............................................................................. 7
Step 4: Calculate the Total Spill Volume ................................................................................................... 7
Recommended Submission Outline .............................................................................................................. 8
Data and Documentation Requirements ...................................................................................................... 9
Appendix A: Useful definitions and Clarifications....................................................................................... 14
Appendix B: Useful References .................................................................................................................. 15
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Disclaimer
This document was created by an SPE Committee in response to the U. S. Department of Interior Bureau
of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Notice to Lessees (NTL) No. 2010-N06 requiring Worst Case
Discharge Calculations (WCD) and documentation. This guidance is not an endorsement of the
methodology put forth by the NTL on a Worst Case Discharge Calculation.
This document is intended to be only a guideline and it is still up to each company responsible for
making the submittal to the BOEM to understand the regulations and ensure that specific data
requirements have been met. It is anticipated that a continuing series of Frequently Asked Questions
(FAQs) and or regulations relating to NTL No. 2010-N06 will be issued over the next few months to
clarify specific points and give more detail on the acceptable form for submittals.
It is recommended that an SPE committee be formed to develop global technical guidance on best
practices to estimate potential spill volumes from uncontrolled well events. In addition, this document
identifies several specific topics where value could be gained by BOEM working with Industry to both
advance the predictive techniques and come to agreement on the realistic modeling of wellbore
phenomena.
Background
In the wake of the Deepwater Horizon incident, the BOEM has revised and increased the requirements
for Worst Case Discharge Scenario calculations. This draft guidance document was created by an SPE
Committee during a Workshop held in Houston, Texas on August 25 and 26, 2010 and organized jointly
by SPE and the Offshore Technology Research Center. The intent of this document is to assist Industry
with conformance to the NTL requirements in a manner that will promote transparent, complete and
uniform calculations for all offshore operations in United States waters. NTL No. 2010-N06 states:
“Due to the explosion and sinking of the Deepwater Horizon, the resulting deaths of 11
people, and changing conditions caused by the blowout of the BP Macondo prospect
weIl that was being drilled by the Deepwater Horizon, the MMS (now BOEM) requires
additional information concerning your planned activities.
Pursuant to the regulations at 30 CFR 250.284 and 250.201 (b), the MMS may require
you to submit additional information necessary to evaluate your proposed or existing
plan or document. In accordance with the regulations, the MMS may also require you to
provide information to demonstrate that you have planned and are prepared to conduct
your proposed activities in a manner that conforms with all applicable federal laws and
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regulations, is safe, conforms to sound conservation practices and does not cause undue
or serious harm or damage to the human, marine or coastal environment pursuant to 30
CFR 250.202. This NTL describes the information you must submit to MMS.”
The purpose of each submittal is to provide BOEM with full and complete documentation to assess each
proposed drilling well should another major spill happen. The discussion should include the estimated
flow rate, the maximum duration of potential uncontrolled flow and the total volume. This Total Spill
Volume and Worst Case Discharge Scenario Rate will be used to address each company’s Oil Spill
Response Plan portion of the regulations.
The documentation is expected to include a complete description of the potential worst case discharge
as required by 30 CFR 250.213(g) and 250.243(h) and as supplemented by several recent FAQs
concerning the NTL (see Appendix).
Documentation requirements in the NTL state that each submittal must:
“Describe the assumptions and calculations that you used to determine the volume
(daily discharge rate) of your worst case discharge scenario required by 30 CFR
250.219(a)(2)(iv) (for EPs) or 30 CFR 250.250(a)(2)(iv) (for DPPs and DOCDs).
Provide all assumptions you made concerning the well design, reservoir characteristics,
fluid characteristics, and pressure volume temperature (PVT) characteristics; any analog
reservoirs you considered in making those 3 assumptions; an explanation of your
reasons for using those analog reservoirs; and the supporting calculations and models
you used to determine the daily discharge rate possible from the uncontrolled blowout
portion of your worst case discharge scenario for both your proposed or approved EP,
DPP or DOCD worst case discharge scenario and your proposed or approved regional Oil
Spill Response Plan (OSRP) worst-case discharge scenario used in your comparison.”
The NTL also states that this calculation is required for both oil and gas wells. The regulatory definition
of “oil” includes “oil, condensate that has been injected into a pipeline, or gas and naturally occurring
condensate.” Thus, gas wells are not exempt from the calculation.
BOEM has stated that they will review each submittal as well as conduct an independent calculation. An
operator’s omission of information for the calculation is likely to result in the BOEM staff interpreting
their own inputs for the Worst Case Discharge calculation. The Worst Case Discharge calculation and
approval process is expected to become more explicit as BOEM states reasons for not approving specific
permits. BOEM has committed to share weekly updates of what items have caused these submissions
to be recycled. Revised formal regulations including additional clarifications are expected to be issued in
September, 2010. BOEM has stated that they expect to spend about 150 man-hours (one man-month)
per submittal.
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Calculation Procedure
It is necessary to consider each hole section that will be drilled as a possible candidate for the Worst
Case Discharge Scenario during an Uncontrolled Flow event. It is recommended that the Worst Case
Discharge Scenario evaluation includes these four steps:
Step 1: Evaluate all potential hydrocarbon-bearing intervals in each section of the hole to be
drilled and determine the Uncontrolled Flow for each hole section following the guidelines
described below. The hole section with the highest Uncontrolled Flow Rate scenario will be
considered the Worst Case Discharge Scenario for reporting.
Step 2: Estimate the time required to drill a relief well for the hole section to be considered for
Worst Case Discharge Scenario reporting.
Step 3: For the hole section considered as the Worst Case Discharge Scenario for reporting,
provide a single rate profile for production decline or depletion for all zones including those
which may be commingled.
Step 4: From the flow rate projection determined in Step 3, calculate the total potential spill
volume over the time required to kill the well.
Note that BOEM requires both hardcopy and electronic copy formats for all documentation. The
submittal should include documentation files as appropriate to identify all input variable necessary to
recreate the calculation.
Step 1: Determine Uncontrolled Flow for each hole section
The NTL indicates that the Worst Case Discharge Scenario should include all hydrocarbon-bearing zones
in each open-hole section as it is planned to be drilled. The Uncontrolled Flow should include the
combined flow from all zones in each open hole section that could be commingled in an uncontrolled
flow scenario. It is to be assumed that each hole section is fully drilled when the event occurs.
Clarifications from BOEM indicate that calculations are not limited to those zones defined as
“productive” (>15’ of hydrocarbons) by the regulations. BOEM has stated that “all zones capable of
flow” should be included. There has been no additional guidance on how thick a zone must be to add
materially to the Worst Case Discharge Scenario calculation.
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Although initial guidance from BOEM was to include all sands that might flow in each open hole section,
the BOEM has now been seen to challenge inclusion of water sands in the calculation of the commingled
flow rate. Therefore, the inclusion of water-bearing sands in the WCD scenario should be strongly
supported by offset and analog data. Note that the inclusion of water sands can result in a situation
where the highest calculated oil rate does not occur during the early portion of the uncontrolled flow. If
water sands are included but deplete prematurely, this situation could result in an increasing oil
discharge rate as time passes during the event.
For selection of input parameters for each zone, the intent is that the output of the flow rate calculation
should approximate the best technical estimate. The WCD rate and resulting total potential spill volume
estimates will be used for logistics planning in each company’s Oil Spill Response Plan and should be
best estimates based on all technical, analog, and mechanical data available.
Recommendations specific to analog data selection have largely been avoided in this document. The SPE
Committee considers that the complexity of appropriate analog data selection to cover both
Development and Exploratory wells precludes hard guidelines. However, the FAQ documents make it
clear that the BOEM will rely heavily on BOEM internal data spanning all GOM field developments. It
has also been made clear that they consider nearby well or field analogs completed in a similar lithology
more appropriate than far-field or regional data. It is highly recommended that each company consider
both local analogs as well as Industry available database analogs as might be appropriate for each
scenario.
Worst Case Discharge Scenario rates should be based on uncontrolled flow at the mud line with a
hydrostatic water column or atmospheric pressure at sea level if well work is on an existing platform.
Worst Case Discharge Scenario rates for development wells should be calculated on a well-by-well basis.
In situations where work is being conducted from a drillship or mobile offshore drilling unit, it is
assumed that the vessel and riser are disconnected and any wellhead and well control equipment at the
mudline has been damaged to the point where it provides no physical restriction to flow.
The NTL specifies that the hole section to be considered for the Worst Case Discharge Scenario will be
the section with the greatest discharge potential. In the context of the BOEM FAQ document, the SPE
Committee interprets this to mean the hole section with the highest Uncontrolled Flow Rate rather than
the Highest Total Volume over the time period of the event.
For the selected hole section, detailed documentation must be submitted as outlined below. For other
sections of the hole, documentation should be limited to data necessary to support the logic behind the
model for sand and hydrocarbon presence and, if hydrocarbons are thought to exist, data to support the
Uncontrolled Flow Rate calculation for that section
The Uncontrolled Flow calculation should be carefully checked for quality control. This may
include ensuring selected flow correlations don't show unrealistic gradient anomalies, verifying flow exit
velocities are sub-sonic and confirming that computed PVT properties from correlations are consistent
with analogs. Any inconsistencies in data submissions or a lack of clarity in describing assumptions will
likely result in delay of approval by the BOEM.
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Step 2: Determine the Time Required to Drill a Relief Well
For the section of the hole selected for Worst Case Discharge Scenario reporting, the best estimate of
the time required to drill a relief well and kill the uncontrolled flow. The time required should include:
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days to secure a rig, de-mob/mob and be ready to drill at the relief well site, plus
time to drill the relief well and intersect the blowout well at the base of the previous casing
point, plus
days to kill and cement the blowout well
Ensure that sufficient documentation is included to confirm the expected days to drill the relief well to
the target depth and clearly show the calculation of the total days required.
Step 3: Provide a Rate Profile for Production Decline
The NTL requires reporting of the estimated flow rate, the maximum duration of potential uncontrolled
flow and the total volume. Most wells will initially flow at a high unconstrained rate and then
experience rate decline either due to transient effects, reservoir boundaries or depletion. A rate profile
for production decline for the hole section to be considered for Worst Case Discharge Scenario reporting
may be estimated several ways. In order to speed up the approval process, it is recommended that the
most simple and straightforward analogs and analytical methods be used. However, wells with welldefined geologic models may use simulation or material balance models to estimate rate decline with
pressure depletion.
If using a limited or bounded reservoir model, clearly indicate the maximum drainage area and show
how it conforms to structure maps and interpreted fault or stratigraphic boundaries. If modeling a
reservoir with production history, include sufficient reservoir performance or history match data to
substantiate the expected pressure decline with rate and cumulative production. For wells with no
immediate offsets or an uncertain geologic model, clearly provide supporting assumptions for any
pressure depletion or water production expected within the calculation period.
Step 4: Calculate the Total Spill Volume
The total potential spill volume to be reported for discharge scenario reporting will be defined as the
sum of the production from the flow rate profile over the time required to kill the well. This is the total
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volume to be addressed by each company’s Oil Spill Response Plan. Oil production volumes should be
reported in stock tank barrels of oil.
Recommended Submission Outline
The NTL requires a significant increase in documentation requirements. For the section of the hole that
will be used for Worst Case Discharge Scenario reporting, it is necessary to estimate the well, reservoir
and fluid properties as outlined below. According to the 10 August 2010 FAQ: “BOEM recommends
including a Summary Sheet with your data submittal that states the parameters you used to derive the
worst case discharge scenario.”
A summary table of input data and nodal output graphs to document the Uncontrolled Flow for each
hole section considered as the source of the Worst Case Discharge Scenario should be included to
clearly identify which hole section would result in the highest discharge rate. Detailed documentation of
analogs and rate profiles is required only for the hole section used for Worst Case Discharge Scenario
reporting. Documentation for all other hole sections should be properly archived.
1) Introduction and Summary
a. Introduction with summary of results and calculated rates and volumes
2) Discussion of Prospect/Field and Summary of Well Plan
a. Prospect or Field Summary
b. Well Objectives
c. Well Plan Overview
i. Discussion of each hole section, noting the presence or absence of hydrocarbon
bearing zones in each section.
3) Description of Worst Case Discharge Scenario Rates and Volumes
a. Clearly identify which hole section will be considered for the Worst Case Discharge
Scenario reporting
b. Discuss intervention and relief well plans and time required to kill the well
c. Discuss the production rate projection
d. Include a summary sheet documenting the calculation of the total potential spill volume
over the time to kill the well.
4) Worst Case Discharge Scenario Documentation - as specified by the NTL, you must document
all assumptions supporting the evaluation (see next section for discussion):
a. Reservoir characteristics;
b. Reservoir pressure data;
c. Reservoir drive mechanisms;
d. Reservoir drainage area and depletion rates;
e. Wellbore completion configurations;
f. Casing and open-hole sizes;
g. Casing and open-hole absolute roughness;
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h. Production history;
i. Static and flowing pressures and temperatures;
j. Mechanical skin damage;
k. Water intrusion;
l. Coning;
m. Formation sloughing;
n. Bridging;
o. Pressure-volume-temperature characteristics of the fluid;
p. Hydrostatic pressure
5) List of attached displays and input/output files
a. Include a list of all displays referenced in the document.
b. Include files for each software package used and a hard copy report.
6) Attach displays, cross sections and maps in digital and hardcopy format
a. Include summary calculations describing flow potential of zones
b. Examples of typical maps, diagrams and tables are illustrated in the attached BOEMissued FAQ documents.
Data and Documentation Requirements
Specific data and documentation requirements are:
(1) Hole sections not included in the Worst Case Discharge Scenario calculations
For hole sections that will not contain hydrocarbon bearing sands or those sections not used in the
Worst Case Discharge Scenario, a geological and offset well discussion must be included along with
sufficient displays to justify this conclusion.
(2) Hole section included in the Worst Case Discharge Scenario calculations
For the hole section to be used in Worst Case Discharge Scenario reporting, provide support for the
following:
(a) reservoir characteristics;
Include a description of each target sand as it relates to the general depositional environment
for the field or prospect. Note offset wells, interpreted faults or channel boundaries and clearly
show any reservoir limits that may reduce flow potential.
Include structure maps for each potentially producible sand to be encountered (tops and base)
which clearly identify the surface and bottom-hole location of each well. Net sand isopach maps
should be included or a statement should be made concerning the average net sand over the
drainage area. Clearly indicate the measured depth thickness expected to be penetrated, as
well as the net sand thickness used for the flow rate calculation.
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Include one or two seismic cross-sections showing the well site location with reference to any
offset wells. Clearly show prospective oil-water and gas-oil contacts on cross-sections and
maps. Identify the seismic survey permit number used in the submitted EP seismic snap shots
and indicate whether the data had been reprocessed.
Include log cross-section clearly depicting all anticipated hydrocarbons bearing zones. Give one
deterministic estimate of net sand for each zone and cite support for this value. Give one
deterministic estimate of average porosity and permeability for each zone and cite support for
these values. It is understood that BOEM has established an internal database to estimate rock
and fluid properties for all known productive geologic horizons. Include a summary table of rock
and fluid properties used for each zone and clearly indicate the source of these values, whether
internal estimates or from an Industry available database. Clearly show the difference between
relative vs. absolute permeability as these values may be easily confused.
No guidance has been given on preferred scale of maps and presentation materials – only that
they be large enough to be legible. Documentation should follow the guidelines commonly used
in EP, DPP and DOCD submittals. Note that a FAQ published on August 10, 2010 for this NTL
contains example displays showing what level of detail the BOEM expects.
(b) reservoir pressure and temperature data;
Provide an estimate of initial reservoir pressure and temperature at the subject well location
and cite support for this value. Initial pressure and hydrocarbon saturation conditions are
assumed unless depletion can be documented in the same reservoir.
(c) reservoir drive mechanisms;
State expected reservoir drive mechanism and cite support for this assumption.
(d) reservoir drainage area and depletion rates;
If using a limited or bounded reservoir model, clearly indicate the maximum drainage area and
show how it conforms to faults or stratigraphic reservoir limits on structure maps. If using a
material-balance or simulation model to predict performance, clearly document key
assumptions and inputs to allow. As the BOEM has stated that they will create an independent
model with internal software, any input details that are not clearly documented will be subject
to interpretation. In reservoirs that have produced, include sufficient production history data
and show a history match to substantiate pressure decline predictions with rate and cumulative
production.
(e) wellbore completion configurations;
Give a general description of the drilling plan in the Worst Case Discharge Scenario hole section.
Include directional survey plan clearly showing planned well location and deviation. BOEM
requires that the Worst Case Discharge Scenario assumes open-hole conditions, regardless of
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actual well plans. Each hole section will be considered to be fully drilled per the drilling plan at
the time of the event.
(f) casing and open-hole sizes;
Worst Case Discharge Scenario calculations will assume open-hole conditions over each hole
section to be separately drilled and cased. Once casing is set over each hole section, the
productive zones behind pipe are no longer considered to have the ability to contribute for the
remainder of the operation. Guidance from BOEM is that the Worst Case Discharge Scenario
should not include tubing or completion equipment in the wellbore and each flow scenario
should be modeled with no restriction to flow at the wellhead.
Include a wellbore diagram clearly showing casing points, pipe characteristics and hydrocarbon
bearing zones expected in each hole section. Clearly indicate which hole section is used for
Worst Case Discharge Scenario calculations. For deepwater wells, it will be useful to clearly
indicate the depth below mudline of each hole section.
(g) casing and open-hole absolute roughness;
State expected absolute roughness for the well design and cite support for these values. Make
sure friction factors are appropriate for each section of pipe and open hole. Industry guidance is
to hold these values constant.
(h) production history;
If using a material balance or simulation model to predict performance, include sufficient
production history data and show a history match to substantiate pressure decline predictions
with rate and cumulative.
(i) static and flowing pressures and temperatures;
Include an output table from the systems analysis software showing Worst Case Discharge
Scenario rate and flowing pressures. BOEM requests that the flowing pressures at the reservoir,
wellhead and each change in the internal wellbore diameter be clearly marked. Include graphs
of the nodal analysis. A check that exit velocity does not exceed sonic flow velocity is
recommended.
(j) mechanical skin damage;
BOEM guidance is to set mechanical or completion skin to zero.
(k) water intrusion;
In an open-hole Uncontrolled Flow scenario, any hydrocarbon zones with gas/oil or oil/water
contacts should be modeled to flow all phases. Water inflow will tend to reduce the total oil
rate while gas inflow may impact the total liquid rate from any given zone. If an initial water or
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gas saturation is expected in hydrocarbon bearing zones at the planned penetration point,
clearly show cross-sections, production history and reservoir performance predictions that
substantiate this model. In general, flow assurance issues such as asphaltene deposition and gas
hydrate blockage will be assumed not to occur.
The inclusion of water-bearing sands in the WCD scenario should be strongly supported by
offset and analog data. As described above, the BOEM has now been seen to challenge
inclusion of water sands in the calculation of the commingled flow rate.
(l) coning;
In general, no increase in water or gas saturation in the wellbore due to coning will be assumed
to occur within the calculation period. However, if a nearby oil/water or gas/oil contact can be
documented near the expected penetration point, reservoir modeling can be used to estimate
inflow of different fluid phases. If water or gas coning is expected in hydrocarbon bearing zones,
clearly show cross-sections showing contacts, production history and reservoir performance
predictions that substantiate this model. Guidance from the BOEM is that this prediction should
be illustrated with nearby and appropriate analogs if this argument will be invoked.
(m) formation sloughing;
BOEM guidance is to assume no formation sloughing or hole collapse within the calculation
period. Although there is a high likelihood of formation solids production at high rates, the
effect of solids production on hole conditions cannot be reliably estimated for most wells. Hole
size will be assumed to be constant at the drilled diameter.
(n) bridging;
If available, mechanical earth models or flux calculations may be used to estimate when an open
hole section would collapse and bridge off; however, guidance from the BOEM is that this
prediction should be illustrated with nearby and appropriate analogs if this argument will be
invoked. If available and appropriate, include a detailed history of the analog event along with
core photos and descriptions of the failed intervals, if available.
(o) Pressure-volume-temperature characteristics of the fluid;
Include a table of fluid properties used in the Worst Case Discharge Scenario calculations for
each zone. In lieu of measured PVT data, industry accepted correlations can be used to estimate
fluid PVT properties. Clearly indicate which correlations are being used.
Show oil properties at reservoir condition including bubble point pressure, Boi, Rsoi, viscosity of
oil and oil compressibility, API gravity and specific gas gravity. Cite support for these values.
Note that many available oil viscosity correlations are considered relatively coarse. Since oil
viscosity can be a key component of the Worst Case Discharge Scenario flow rate calculation,
viscosity correlations matched with analog fluids are preferred.
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For gas reservoirs, show gas properties at reservoir conditions including Bgi, API gravity of
condensate, specific gas gravity, gas compressibility (z) factor and yield (bbl/mmcf). Cite support
for these values. For Exploratory situations, consider that seismic inaccuracies in sub-salt
reservoirs may lead to significant uncertainties in the estimation of fluid and reservoir
characteristics modeled from seismic.
(p) hydrostatic pressure;
Hydrostatic pressure of seawater can be assumed to be water depth times a seawater gradient
of 0.445 psi/ft.
(3) Summary Documentation
The BOEM recommend inclusion of a summary sheet documenting the parameters listed above and a
table or paragraph clearly stating the Worst Case Discharge Scenario rate, maximum duration of
potential uncontrolled flow and the total potential spill volume. Identify commercial or internal software
packages used in making all rate and volume calculations. Current guidance from BOEM indicates that
they do not require copies of input decks from each software program used although, as noted above,
all input documentation necessary to recreate the estimates should be provided in a clear and organized
manner.
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Appendix A: Useful definitions and Clarifications
Absolute Open Flow : The maximum flow rate a well could theoretically deliver in 24 hours with zero
pressure at the middle of the flowing interval and no friction or fluid column weight holding the well
back. The term is commonly abbreviated as AOFP.
Uncontrolled Flow: The maximum flow rate a well could deliver in 24 hours at the minimum possible
surface or mud line pressure considering all practical aspects of the well design, reservoir and fluid
properties but with no choke.
Worst Case Discharge: Discharge of the hole section with the highest estimates based on Uncontrolled
Flow calculations. Absolute Open Flow estimates are useful to compare the flow capacity of wells
without physical constraints, but have little meaning otherwise. These two values are easily confused by
people who do not routinely work with the concepts.
NTL: Notice to Lessees and Operators
WCD: Worst Case Discharge
BOEM: Bureau of Ocean Energy Management
MMS: Minerals Management Service
EP - Exploration Plan
DOCD - Development Operations Coordination Documents
DPP: Development and Production Plan
APD: Application for Permit to Drill
CFR: Code of Federal Regulations
OSRP: Oil Spill Response Plan
PVT: Pressure-volume-temperature
FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions
SPE: Society of Petroleum Engineers
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Appendix B: Useful References
1. Notices to Lessees and Operators (Chronological Order)
http://www.gomr.mms.gov/homepg/regulate/regs/ntls/ntl_lst2.html
FAQ NTL 2010-N06 August 10, 2010
NTL 2010-N06 June 18, 2010
2. Electronic Code of Federal Regulations
www.gpoaccess.gov/ecfr/
References to Federal Code of Regulations cited in the NTL’s and FAQ’s to NTL’s.
3. Well Permits Subject to Increased Safety Measures and Updated Blowout and Worst Case Discharge
Scenarios
http://www.boemre.gov/homepg/offshore/safety/well_permits.html
4.
Increased Safety Measures for Energy Development on the Outer Continental Shelf and other
documents from BOEMRE Forums on Offshore Drilling.
http://www.boemre.gov/forums/library_resource_material.htm
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This document contains general guidance for calculating the worst-case discharge and providing the
information requested by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management in its NTL No. 2010-N06. The Society of
Petroleum Engineers, its members, and the drafters of this document are not, and are not engaged in,
rendering legal, technical, or other professional services or advice to any person or entity that
references this document. If such advice or assistance is necessary, the services of an appropriate
qualified professional should be retained. Neither SPE, its members, nor any drafter of this document
makes any claim, representation or warranty, express or implied, as to the completeness, correctness or
usefulness of the information in this document or that the information contained in the document will
produce any particular results with regard to the subject matter contained therein, or that the contents
of the document satisfy requirements of NTL No. 2010-N06, or any federal, state, or local laws.
Participation in the drafting of this document or use or reference to this document by any person or
entity is not intended to imply endorsement of the requirements of NTL No. 2010-N06 or agreement that any
of those requirements are in accordance with any federal, state or local laws .
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