R655-1-3. Blowout Prevention

  3.1 General.

  3.1.1 Blowout-Prevention Equipment (BOPE) installations shall meet the minimum specifications for assemblies prescribed by the most recent version of the American Petroleum Institute's Standard 53 (Blowout Prevention Equipment Systems for Drilling Wells) which are incorporated herein by reference or as may be otherwise prescribed by the Division. The American Petroleum Institute Standard 53 is available from the American Petroleum Institute, 1220 L Street, NW, Washington, DC 20005-4070, phone [phone], www.api.org. Equipment for the prevention of a blowout, capable of shutting in the well during any operation, must be installed on the surface casing and maintained in good operating condition at all times. This equipment must have a rating for pressure greater than the maximum anticipated pressure at the wellhead. Equipment for the prevention of a blowout is required on any well where temperatures may exceed 120?C. A BOPE plan including testing must be included in the plan of operations. BOPE shall have a minimum working-pressure rating equal to or greater than the lesser of:

  (a) A pressure equal to the product of the depth of the BOPE anchor string in feet times one psi per foot.

  (b) A pressure equal to the rated burst pressure of the BOPE anchor string.

  (c) A pressure equal to 2,000 psi.

  Specific inspections and tests of the BOPE may be made by the Division. The Division shall be notified at least 48 hours prior to the commencement of a BOPE test. The requirements for tests will be included in the Division's answer to the notice of the intention to drill. The operator shall test the equipment for the prevention of a blowout under pressure. The operator shall submit to the Division the pressure data and supporting information for the equipment for the prevention of a blowout as soon as practicable after the conclusion of the testing. All blowout preventers and related equipment that may be exposed to well pressure must be tested first to a low pressure and then to a high pressure:

  (a) A pressure decline of 10 percent or less in 30 minutes is for the low pressure test considered satisfactory prior to initiating the high-pressure test;

  (b) When performing the low-pressure test, it is not acceptable to apply a higher pressure and bleed down to the low test pressure;

  (c) The high-pressure test must be to the rated working pressure of the ram type blowout prevention equipment and related equipment, or to the rated working pressure of the wellhead on which the stack is installed, whichever is lower. A pressure decline of 10 percent or less in 30 minutes is considered satisfactory;

  (d) Annular blowout prevention equipment must be high-pressure tested to 50 percent of the rated working pressure;

  (e) The blowout prevention equipment must be pressure tested: when installed, prior to drilling out casing shoes, and following repairs or reassembly of the preventers that require disconnecting a pressure seal in the assembly.

  3.1.2 A Division employee may be present at the well at any time during the drilling.

  3.1.3 A logging unit equipped to regularly record the following data shall be installed and operated continuously after drilling out the shoe of the conductor pipe and until the well has been drilled to the total depth.

  (a) Drilling mud temperature.

  (b) Drilling mud pit level.

  (c) Drilling mud pump volume.

  (d) Drilling mud weight.

  (e) Drilling rate.

  (f) Hydrogen sulfide gas volume.

  The Division may waive the requirement for installation of a logging unit on evidence that the owner or operator has engaged a qualified mud engineer to monitor, log and record the data specified in the above subparagraphs a. through d. The drilling rate required in subparagraph e shall be logged with standard industry recording devices, and hydrogen sulfide monitoring and safety equipment shall be provided whenever needed to satisfy the requirement of subparagraph f.

  3.2 Requirements Using Mud as the Drilling Fluid.

  The following requirements are for exploratory areas, unstable areas containing fumaroles, geysers, hot springs, mud pots, and for fields with a history of lost circulation, a blowout, or zone pressures less than 1000 psi. These requirements may be reduced by the State Engineer where the geothermal formations are known to be shallow and of low pressure and temperature.

  (a) An annular BOPE and a spool, fitted with a low-pressure safety pop-off and blow-down line, installed on the conductor pipe may be required to ensure against possible gas blowouts during the drilling of the surface casing hole.

  (b) Annular BOPE and pipe-ram/blind-ram BOPE with a minimum working pressure rating of 2,000 psi shall be installed on the surface casing so that the well can be shut-in at any time. The double-ram preventer shall have a mechanical locking device.

  (c) A hydraulic actuating system utilizing an accumulator of sufficient capacity and a high pressure auxiliary back-up system. This total system shall be equipped with dual controls: one at the driller's station and one at least 50 feet away from the well head.

  (d) Kelly cock and standpipe valve.

  (e) A fill-up line installed above the BOPE.

  (f) A kill line installed below the BOPE, leading directly to the mud pumps and fitted with a valve through which cement could be pumped if necessary.

  (g) A blow-down line fitted with two valves installed below the BOPE. The blow-down line shall be directed in a manner to permit containment of produced fluids and to minimize any safety hazard to personnel.

  (h) All lines and fittings shall be steel and have a minimum working-pressure rating of at least that required of the BOPE.

  (i) The temperature of the return mud during the drilling of the surface casing hole shall be monitored regularly. Either a continuous temperature monitoring device shall be installed and maintained in working condition, or the temperature shall be read manually. In either case, return mud temperatures shall be logged after each joint of pipe is drilled down every 30 feet.

  3.3 Requirements Using Air as the Drilling Fluid.

  The following requirements are for areas where it is known that dry steam exists at depth or formation pressures are less than hydrostatic:

  (a) A rotating-head installed at the top of the BOPE stack.

  (b) A pipe-ram/blind-ram BOPE, with a minimum working-pressure rating of 1,000 psi, installed below the rotating-head so that the well can be shut-in at any time.

  (c) A banjo-box or mud-cross steam diversion unit installed below the double-ram BOPE fitted with a muffler capable of lowering sound emissions to within State standards.

  (d) A blind-ram BOPE, with a minimum working-pressure rating of 1,000 psi, installed below the banjo-box or mud-cross so that the well can be shut-in while removing the rotating-head during bit changes.

  (e) A master gate valve, with a minimum working-pressure rating of 600 psi, installed below the blind-ram so that the well can be shut-in after the well has been completed, prior to removal of the BOPE stack.

  (f) All ram-type BOPE shall have a hydraulic actuating system utilizing an accumulator of sufficient capacity and a high-pressure backup system.

  (g) Dual control stations for hydraulic backup system: one at the driller's station and the other at least 50 feet away from the well head.

  (h) Float and standpipe valves.

  (i) A kill line installed below the BOPE, leading directly to the mud pumps and fitted with a valve through which cement could be pumped if necessary.

  (j) All lines and fittings must be steel and have a minimum working-pressure rating of 1,000 psi.