Attempt fails to plug Timor Sea oil well

A first attempt has failed to plug a well which has been leaking oil into the Timor
Sea off Australia's northwest for more than a month.
The spill began on August 21 at PTTEP Australasia's Montara well-head platform, more
than 200km off the Kimberley coast.
A spokeswoman for PTTEP Australasia said the attempt to pump heavy mud into the
leaking well on Tuesday had failed.
"The process now is they have to attempt another pass but that sequence takes about
another four days," she said.
Using surveys, a drilling team aboard the West Triton relief drilling rig aimed to
intersect a piece of steel casing about 25cm in diameter, 2.6km below the seabed.
PTTEP Australasia chief financial officer Jose Martins on Monday said the relief
well operation was "very complex".
"The drilling team is trying to locate and intersect a piece of steel casing about
25cm in diameter, 2.6km below the sea bed," Mr Martins said.
"The intercept operation may involve several passes and complex calculations using
sophisticated equipment and software to narrow down the exact location of the
leaking well casing.
"Each pass narrows that zone of uncertainty.
"If the first approach did not succeed, each successive pass sequence takes up to
four days to complete.
"This would mean a second pass being able to be undertaken on Friday or Saturday."
Australian Greens senator Rachel Siewert said it was not surprising the company had
failed in its first attempt.
"As I understand it, they have entered the really tricky phase of the recovery
operation, which is actually finding the leak itself and injecting," she said.
"They said it would take eight weeks at the beginning and that must have been
allowing for a margin for error, as we're now approaching seven weeks since the
spill began."
Senator Siewert said she was concerned about the cause of the leak.
"As far as we know - and they (PTTEP) may know more than what they're telling us -
they have had to make some assumptions about what is causing the leak," she said.
"We don't know if it is leaking from the wellhead or if it is the cement that is
leaking."
Conservationists have been critical of the government's response to the oil spill
which is in a remote and isolated area, home to a number of endangered species.
On Tuesday, environmental groups published an open letter to oil and gas company
chief executives in WA's daily newspaper.
"For six weeks oil has polluted WA's precious Kimberley waters and your industry
cannot guarantee another disaster like this will not happen again," the letter said.
"Your industry is expanding throughout this sensitive marine region.
"Yet you remain silent on protecting the globally significant marine wildlife, reefs
and corals of the Kimberley and North West from further damage."
The letter urged the companies to support the establishment of large marine
sanctuaries in the area, of which they say only one per cent is protected.
"The Kimberley marine environment is one of the most pristine in the world -
rivalling even the Great Barrier Reef," it said.
Last week, Indonesia sent a team of officials to monitor Australia's response to the
oil spill, saying it feared it could harm Indonesia's marine life.