The Port of Iberia is home to several companies that have played important roles in delivering some important components of the Shell Appomattox project.
Last week, huge barges began arriving to take the first flow line and riser pipes out to the site of the platform project, in the Gulf of Mexico.
But the work isn’t close to being done, said Port Director Craig Romero.
"This is a deep water project quarter and it takes about 10 years from first discovery to final production of that discovery for a deep water project to go on line," Romero says. "This is all part of the process and they project for the first flow of oil to take place in the year 2020."
Bayou Pipe Coating has been coating the pipe, which will connect to the platform out in the gulf, Romero explained. The huge barges, 105’ wide by 400’ long x 25’ tall, are loading the first of the pipes that Bayou Pipe has been working on for the past 18 months or so. It takes about five days to load each pipe.
The barges will be constantly loading and transporting the pipes through this fall, Romero said.
Bayou Companies built the plant specifically to coat this pipe more than two years ago at a cost of $14 million, Romero said. So far, the company has more than 200,000 man hours invested in the project.
Omega Natchiq Inc. is a local company building the terminals, and those also are being loaded on huge barges for delivery to the construction site, Romero said. And, Halliburton is constructing a facility at the Acadiana Regional Airport to house the completion tools for the project, Romero said.
The project is expected to cost $17 billion. To read more about it, click here.
