Investigation Report, GoM

Article in Dagens Næringsliv Thursdag 09.09.10.

Here is an office translation of the article.

"The most important that I have written" says Morten H. Emilsen, add wellflow as

Emilsen is one of very few external members of BP's own investigation team. The Norwegian has conducted one of the most important investigations in the report that will tell the world what happened prior to the disaster that led to 11 people lost their lives and the largest oil spill held on for 87 days.

- It's very exciting. I'm being told that this is the most important report I have written, "says Emilsen who is the leader for software and technology in the company add wellflow.

The day after the much discussed report is published, the months of extreme security are over.

Intense work
The investigation team was put together just days after the disaster was a fact on 20 April this year and has worked under considerable pressure.

-“I was called at ten o'clock in the evening a few days after the blowout and put on a plane the next day. We worked 14 hours a day every day, including Saturday and Sunday. Obama administration stated that they were waiting for the report, and it was revised many times by both technical personnel and lawyers before it was published, "he said.

Emilsen tells of the extreme level of security where the group members did not move from the 25th floor or to speak with whomever they wanted. Print-outs were destroyed almost as soon as they were made, and the computers were locked in when the members wentto the hotel to sleep. All e-mails and all traffic on group members' mobile phones were monitored.

- I've never experienced anything at this security level. Nevertheless, we experienced that small leaks did come out. How, I don’t know"he said.

Could happen here
Thus went the entire month of May.  After a short vacation in June,  the father of 3 children traveled back to Houston in the summer. Throughout the period he knew much more than those who voiced theories about the accident - in both the media and within the industry - without being able to say something.

- Among other things it has been said that a similar incident could not happen in Norway and other things that I have not been able to express anything about, "he said.

And ...

- Many of these statements are absurd, "he said, adding that the PSA acknowledges that we have had a lot of the near disasters here in Norway. He denies that there are other reservoir properties in the well in the Gulf of Mexico than those found on the Norwegian continental shelf.

- We have had many incidents where it is just before a disaster. Snorre B, for example, was seconds from a real disaster. It is not a single event which triggers a a disaster, it is often a consequence of several events that occur simultaneously, often at random, he says, adding that the security situation in Norway is good, but we must recognize that there are risks associated with the petroleum industry.

- What is it you can - that nobody else can?

- Our company is specialized in how to stop these type of blowouts. We use a model that was developed in Norway which is recognized as the only one that works, "he said.

And it's not the first time he has jumped on a plane. The six employees of the company have routinely set out to accidents and near-misses all over the world.Since 1991 the average has been one blowout in a year.

His job in the investigation group was to find out why the oil began to flow out and how it flowed. He and the others in the group used tools such as eyewitness accounts, interviews with people who were on the rig and data logs for temperature and pressure in the well.

Witness Interview with six lawyers
The group which was appointed to investigate the disaster felt that the witnesses became more and more silent as time passed, and the question of guilt became more predominant in media coverage.

- It would have been easier if the witnesses were more interested in talking. In the beginning, we got some information before the companies staffed with lawyers. For example we had such an interview with a Halliburton employee who marched in with six lawyers and never said a word, says Emilsen.

After BP's report was made public yesterday, there has been a lot of talk about BP attempting to place blame on others and that one can not expect anything else from an internal investigation. Emilsen does not agree.

- We worked entirely to get to the bottom of what has happened. It was also the mandate, Mark Bly, who led the group received by Tony Hayward, outgoing chief executive of BP, said Emilsen.

Mark Bly is head of security and operations in BP.