The NewsRoom
Release:
Date: October 24, 2005

MMS to Hold Structural Assessment Process Dissemination Meeting

The Minerals Management Service (MMS) Gulf of Mexico OCS region will hold a half-day Structural Assessment Process Dissemination Meeting on the proposed American Petroleum Institute (API) Structural Integrity Management Recommended Practice in Houston on November 15th. The Meeting will take place at The Texas A & M University System Health Science Center, IBT Facilities Auditorium, 2121 Holcombe Boulevard, Houston, Texas 77030-3303 from 7:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

In recognition of the need to demonstrate the fitness-for-purpose of existing offshore structures, MMS hosted a workshop in September 2003 on the “Assessment of Existing Offshore Structures.” The workshop acknowledged that Section 17 of API RP 2A provides an important and robust process to determine the fitness-for-purpose of existing platforms, but identified several important areas where greater clarity would be beneficial. In addition, MMS made it clear that they were not comfortable with certain areas of the recommended practice.

A key recommendation from the workshop was for API, through Sub-Committee 2, formally to address the specific concerns of MMS and to consider the benefits of updating Section 17 and developing a stand-alone Recommended Practice (RP) for the Structural Integrity Management (SIM) of Existing Offshore Platforms. Since the workshop, a task group was established to review the requirements and update RP 2A Section 17. A status of this work was discussed with industry at a workshop held at the MMS New Orleans offices in October 2004. This work is now nearing completion. API is in the process of issuing a Supplement to API RP 2A that will include modifications to Section 17. The new SIM RP is nearly complete in draft form.

The purpose of this meeting is to share the content and status of the API 2A Supplement and the draft SIM RP with structural engineers involved in the assessment process. The objectives are to communicate the introduction of a supplement to API RP 2A, with focus on Modifications to API Section 17, and to discuss the proposed content and status of the stand-alone API Recommended Practice entitled “Structural Integrity Management of Existing Offshore Platforms.” MMS will provide details and examples for reporting of API Section 17 assessments, specifically ultimate strength assessments, and follow up with a panel discussion and addressing questions from the participants.

To register for the event either:
 
By Mail: Send notification of registration to:

By Fax: Send notification of registration to 713-463-6557
Via email: to Kristina Taylor at ktaylor@mslengineering.com
 
For more information and to register online:
Visit the website at: http://www.mslengineering.com/SAPMMSMeeting/Introduction.asp
 
Registration Deadline:
Registration details must be confirmed no later than November 11, 2005, by the end of business
day. No walk-ins will be permitted.

MMS, part of the U.S. Department of the Interior, oversees 1.76 billion acres of the Outer Continental Shelf, managing offshore energy and minerals while protecting the human, marine, and coastal environments. The OCS provides 30 percent of oil and 21 percent of natural gas produced domestically, as well as sand used for coastal restoration. MMS collects, accounts for, and disburses mineral revenues from Federal and American Indian lands, and contributes to the Land and Water Conservation Fund and other special use funds, with Fiscal Year 2004 disbursements of about $8 billion and more than $143 billion since 1982.

Relevant Web Sites:
   MMS Main Website
   Gulf of Mexico Website

Media Contacts:
   Debra Winbush  (281) 873-1858
   Caryl Fagot        (281) 873-1859    

MMS: Securing Ocean Energy & Economic Value for America
U.S. Department of the Interior
 

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