Blowout containment drill gets underway in Gulf

In deep Gulf of Mexico waters 267 miles from Houston, federal regulators and the oil industry on Tuesday launched a drill meant to test whether emergency equipment and first responders are ready to tackle an out-of-control subsea well.

Operating out of a Houston command center, the exercise focuses on equipment owned and operated by the Helix Well Containment Group, following a similar deployment drill last year involving rival Marine Well Containment Co.

Inspired by the equipment finally used to arrest the 2010 Gulf oil spill, Helix's containment system is meant to cap a blown-out underwater well and halt the flow of hydrocarbons. After the Gulf spill, federal regulators mandated that oil companies seeking approval to drill in deep U.S. waters must prove they have immediate access to above- and below-sea resources that can contain a blowout.

Over the course of several days, regulators will put Helix's system through an emergency scenario in real-life conditions at a Noble Energy test well 124 miles from Grand Isle, La. While workers deploy the equipment in the Gulf of Mexico with regulators looking on, government and industry officials will be huddled at the command center in Houston.

Helix is expected to lower its capping stack through 5,047 feet of water to the sea floor by wire, then latch it to a test wellhead and pressurize the system.

But the challenge isn't just sending a capping stack down to the wellhead. Regulators also will be scrutinizing operators' ability to arrange and manage an array of support vessels, staff and equipment that would be needed in an emergency.