From the President - July 2001
Our industry is truly global and its activities have become increasingly diverse geographically. As both exploration and development technology have improved, the recent trend has been towards the deepwater oil and gas provinces of Brazil, West Africa and the Gulf of Mexico.
The Gulf of Mexico was the first offshore oil and gas province in the 1940s, as exploration and production progressed naturally from onshore. In the first fifty years, hundreds of offshore structures and pipelines were constructed and it can be argued that the Gulf of Mexico was where our industry was founded. Methods and techniques that developed in that region were exported around the globe and were further developed in harsher environments, such as the North Sea.
The cycle has now come full circle, as development of the new deepwater provinces in the Gulf calls for the most capable equipment and expertise of our international members.
Much controversy has recently surrounded IMCA Council's decision to establish an Americas section. However, there can be no doubt it is the right thing to do.
Only during this month there has been a catastrophic failure during flexible pipelaying operations in deepwater and in separate marine incidents there have been two fatalities on two successive days. One fatality involved a hydraulically operated watertight door, similar to two earlier incidents involving IMCA members.
We have an obligation to establish a forum for communication about health, safety and environment (HSE) issues for Gulf of Mexico and South Atlantic operations and there will be great benefit in having active marine, ROV and survey divisions. Having met Jim Doré President of the Association of Diving Contractors International, I am sure we can work in harmony for the benefit of our industry.
John Smith, Halliburton Subsea
IMCA President 2001-2
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