Chile

So with the news of the Chilean miners finally getting to come home, I just wanted to show you a story of what someone I know from SLB was doing during the days leading up to the rescue. It is so awesome to see how even though I work in a very selfish and dark industry, people still care about others even though the will get nothing in return (I especially like one of the last paragraphs about their living situation while drilling one of the rescue holes)! Enjoy!

From the wellsite in Copiapo, Chile, where the Schlumberger drill team is working to reach Chile’s 33 trapped miners.
by Ma Jimena B B on Sunday, October 10, 2010 at 8:34am

IPM REPORTING FROM CHILE...

Like anyone would be, I was interested and intrigued when asked to come to Copiapo, Chile, to act as our company’s interface with the Chilean Rescue team and the world press as Schlumberger joined the effort to reach 33 miners trapped in a gold and copper mine since August 5th, when the main access tunnel collapsed. I needed only a few seconds to decide.

It’s a long way from Gatwick, England to Copiapo, a lonely agglomeration 700 kilometers north of Santiago and 1600km south of La Paz, Bolivia—with little in between. The mine itself is situated 40 kilometers outside of Copiapo, in the Atacama desert, in some of the most barren country on our planet. Since arriving here September 26 and taking up residence in a modest hotel in downtown Copiapo, I drive to the mine each morning, passing first through the camp for family members and the press before getting to the rig, where I spend the day with our team, our client and the rescue management group. They’ve got their work cut out for them.

To recap, Schlumberger has been contracted by ENAP (Empresa Nacional del Petróleo) to drill well “C,” officially called Atacama 33, the second of two rescue holes aimed at the mine’s tunnel network 608 meters below the surface, where the miners are holed up. While wells “A” and “B” are being drilled by mining rigs, which advance through the rock by hammering at it, we’re using a standard oil drilling rig and oilfield technology, which bores through the rock with a rotary bit.

The challenges of drilling here are enormous. The rock to be drilled is much harder than those encountered in oil and gas exploration, and we’re having to drill the entire hole with a very large, 28-inch bit, to make the hole big enough to pull the miners through. Because bits this big are designed for cutting through much softer, surface level rock, they’re wearing out quickly, and we’re having to replace them in rapid succession. Another challenge is getting the hole placement right, so that we eventually end up hitting the tunnel network where the miners are located. This has involved temporarily using a smaller, 17½” bit with greater directional sensitivity, and later enlarging the hole with a 28” "hole opener.” Yet another significant challenge here involves simple logistics—just getting the necessary equipment and people here to the mine, the majority of which and whom come from outside of Chile.

One of the most captivating things I’ve encountered since arriving is the intensity of our team’s focus on getting the trapped miners out, no matter what it takes. We’ve got 12 people at the mine site—four from D&M, three each from Wireline and IPM including me, and two from Smith. Behind the scenes we have engineers supporting us in Santiago, Chile; Neuquen, Argentina, Gatwick and Houston. And tomorrow, Friday October 8, we have a person coming from Houston Engineering to help adapt our wireline to the rescue capsule. Our wellsite employees are living in tough conditions right next to the roaring rig motor—no running water, poor food, sharing five beds between them in two tiny port-a-cabins. It’s hot during the day and cold at night. Yet no one’s complaining and no one’s asking to be replaced. They are here because they want to be part of this remarkable effort. I know, because I feel exactly the same.