[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 149 (Thursday, October 30, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2145-E2146]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                AMERICA'S OFFSHORE OIL AND GAS INDUSTRY

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. SOLOMON P. ORTIZ

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, October 30, 1997

  Mr. ORTIZ. Mr. Speaker, in 1947, on a simple platform more than 10 
miles out in the Gulf of Mexico, a thriving industry was born. 
America's domestic offshore oil and gas industry is a significant and 
crucial component of the U.S. economy.
  The industry came of age as our country was moving from a wartime to 
a peacetime economy. Companies, trying to meet the enormous public 
demand for oil and gas during this time, turned their sights from dry 
land to the frontier just beyond the water's edge and its ensuing 
problems. Offshore exploration posed new challenges, such as underwater 
exploration, weather forecasting, tidal and current prediction, 
drilling location determination, and offshore communications.
  Despite the difficulties in such an undertaking, Kerr-McGee Corp. 
struck oil on a beautiful Sunday morning on October 4, 1947. This 
monumental event on Ship Shoal Block 32 in the Gulf of Mexico marked 
the birth of the offshore petroleum and natural gas industry as it is 
known today. Kerr-McGee was a small yet determined exploration and 
production company that predicted the eventual outcome of their daring 
feat and discovered commercial oil in the world's first well drilled in 
the open water.
  Comparisons with yesterday always compel us. Fifty years ago, the 
cost of the first offshore project exceeded $450,000. Today, the costs 
can reach around $1.2 billion per project. The first year of production 
netted 99,371 barrels; today's new deepwater offshore facilities can 
produce over 100,000 barrels of oil per day. In 1947, the first effort 
to

[[Page E2146]]

extract oil from the outer continental shelf occurred 10\1/2\ miles 
from shore in 18 feet of water; today the industry is developing oil 
and gas reserves over 168 miles from shore in thousands of feet of 
water.
  Today, there are nearly 200 drilling rigs currently producing gas and 
oil energy for the United States. Since their exploration began, the 
industry has developed 3-dimensional seismic translation of geophysical 
data which uses high speed computers to provide scientists a clear 
picture of energy reserves beneath the seafloor. The industry has also 
pioneered the development and application of remotely operated vehicles 
and is at the forefront of the development and use of a satellite 
positioning system.
  So who is driving the advance of domestic offshore industry? It is 
the men and women of Aker Gulf Marine of Ingleside, TX, who built 
Shell's record-setting Mars facility. It is the employees of Halter 
Marine shipyard in Sabine, TX, who specialize in construction, repair 
and modification of mobile offshore rigs. It is the workers in Chiles 
Offshore and the AMFELS yard in Brownsville, TX, who are building a 
jack-up rig capable of drilling in 360 feet of water.
  The industry provides nearly 40,000 petroleum-related jobs located 
offshore and another 46,000 jobs indirectly related to Gulf of Mexico 
oil and gas operations. As we enter the 21st century, our Nation is 
facing the challenge of protecting our environment and wisely using our 
natural resources. I am confident that the offshore industry will 
continue to provide reliable and affordable energy supplies to meet 
America's evolving needs. I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing 
the 50th anniversary of the offshore industry and the 25th anniversary 
of the National Ocean Industries Association.

                          ____________________