A to Z: Ensco

I’m doing the A to Z Challenge. To post everyday (except Sundays) through April, one for each letter of the alphabet. Today’s post is Ensco.

Ensco is a drilling company. I’ve spent a couple of years working on a few of their drilling rigs. I’ve never been hired directly by Ensco (tho I wouldn’t have minded that). I was working as an independent contractor. So when they needed someone to fill in, they would call and I would go out to work.

I first started with them on a couple of rig moves on the Deep Ocean Mendocino (later renamed DS-5). Later I was hurricane master on the Ensco 8506 (semisubmersible). I brought it out of the shipyard to get it checked out and then on to it’s first well.

Ensco 8506

Ensco 8506

THAT was a great job! I really enjoyed my time there and was sorry it ended.

Ensco found enough of their own people so that they didn’t need to use fill ins anymore. I think that’s the same for every company in the oilfield at this point.

I’m sure most people are hoping the gas price doesn’t go back up anytime soon. I’m one of the few who’s hoping it does. I probably won’t be going back to work until it does. 🙁

Shallow Wells

We’ve been very busy out here on the rig since I got here. We’ve already done 2 wells and should be finished up and ready to move off this one by tomorrow night. Whew!

The next one should take at least a week, maybe 2. So maybe we won’t have to move again before I’m due off. 🙂

I REALLY don’t like this shallow water drilling!

We are working here on a ‘deepwater drillship’. It’s optimized for working in DEEP water (more than the 500m we’ve been working in lately)! Here’s one of ours, I was working on it a couple of hitches ago.

They’re nice ships, but much better to work the kinds of jobs they’re intended for.