Frequently Asked Questions
What’s the expected lifespan of a reefed rig?
Since the 1980s, approximately 558 oil and gas platforms previously installed on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf have been reefed in the Gulf of Mexico (BSEE 2020). To date, all reefed platforms remain structurally intact and receive periodic maintenance as necessary. While the exact lifespan of these structures is unknown, reefed platforms are continuously monitored and inspected by state agencies to ensure the safety and longevity of the structure. Platform jackets (the section of the platform below the waterline) are constructed of steel, and the encrusting marine organisms can act as a barrier against corrosion that can degrade and weaken the metal. However, the rate of corrosion in the ocean is low and most experts believe that oil platforms will last upwards of two to three hundred years without maintenance before collapsing (Love et al. 2000).
What are the cost savings of reefing?
In California, recent cost estimates for decommissioning and complete removal of California's platforms in federal waters can be found in the paper by Smith et al., titled "Potential Cost Savings from Converting California Outer Continental Shelf Oil and Gas Platform Jackets to Artificial Reefs." This paper, published in 2020, estimated that if all 23 platform jackets are reefed in place the total cost savings achieved would range from $856 million to $2.0 billion. Because CA's platforms range in size and depth, the cost to reef individual platforms varies.
In the Gulf of Mexico, the Texas Artificial Reef Program and the Louisiana Artificial Reef Program actively facilitate the decommissioning of platforms. The cost savings of platform structure donations normally increase with structure complexity. Approximately 50% of the savings realized by the oil and gas operators is donated to the neighboring state’s Artificial Reef Program. These cost savings are utilized for program development and maintenance, as well as and biological and geological research (LDFW 2017; TPWD 2017).
Offshore oil and gas platforms are made of steel, which over time corrodes into iron oxide (rust). However, the rate of corrosion in the ocean is low and most experts believe that oil platforms will last upwards of two to three hundred years without maintenance before collapsing (Love et al. 2000).
In Louisiana, where Rigs to Reefs has been implemented for over 20 years, the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries has commented that "the use of obsolete oil and gas platforms in Louisiana has proven to be highly successful. Their large numbers, design, longevity and stability have provided a number of advantages" (Kasprzak 1998).