There are all kinds of problems in offshore drilling...
Mussel infestation costly for Diamond Offshore
Thu Feb 7, 2008 5:34pm EST
HOUSTON, Feb 7 (Reuters) - A colony of green-lipped mussels that made their home on the hull of a offshore drilling rig in New Zealand proved costly for the rig's owner, Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc (DO.N: Quote, Profile, Research).
Describing the infestation as a "new issue" for the company, Diamond told analysts on a conference call on Thursday it had to hire divers and blasters to remove the mussels, resulting in $5 million in cost overruns for the quarter.
The mussels were discovered when Diamond Offshore was moving the rig, called the Ocean Patriot, from New Zealand to a job in Australia, the company said.
The rig, which was out of commission for 23 days, could not be moved to Australia with the mussels because they are considered a nuisance in that country, said Les Van Dyke, director of investor relations.
Any delay is costly in the offshore drilling business. For example the Ocean Patriot will earn $350,000 a day in Australia, Van Dyke said.
Earlier, the Houston-based company reported a 26 percent decline in fourth-quarter earnings, as a drop in rig utilization weighed on results. (Reporting by Anna Driver in Houston; Editing by Andre Grenon)
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