Encana and Anadarko Shut Down Operations
Posted on Sep 16, 2013 7:37am PDT
Encana Oil & Gas (USA) Inc. and Anadarko Petroleum Corp., shut down
some of their operations in the state due to the storm that sent floodwaters
into homes and businesses north and west of Denver. Encana is heeding
the warnings from local officials regarding the dangerous conditions due
to flooding, spokeswoman Wendy Wiedenbeck said Friday. Anadarko has shut
down about 300 wells in the Wattenberg field, the company said Friday.
The Wattenberg field covers an area that includes southern Weld County
and parts of Boulder, Adams, Larimer and Broomfield counties – counties
that have experienced flooding, washed out roads, and evacuations in the
last few days. "The safety of our communities and protection of the
environment are paramount to all our operations," the company said
in a statement posted on its website. Anadarko said it's also temporarily
scaled back its drilling operations and will restart operations "after
the weather has improved, so that our people can return to work safely."
At Encana, the company has shut in wells it operates in an area north of
Denver and west of I-25 that has been hit hard by the storm. The company
on Friday also closed its field office in Longmont, Wiedenbeck said. Encana
has 75 employees who work out of its Longmont office, plus "a couple
hundred" contractors that come in and out, she said. The company
has a field-wide system that allows Encana to monitor its oil and gas
wells remotely, and shut them down remotely if there are changes that
indicates they need to.
Encana will send employees out to check on the locations and start mitigation
efforts if needed, Wiedenbeck said. At Noble Energy Inc., indications
are that things are operating normally, spokesman Jon Ekstrom said. Noble's
operations are generally on the east side of I-25, which hasn't been
hit by the flooding that's been seen on the other side of the highway.