Efforts to contain a dangerous blowout at an oil field in Arunachal Pradesh’s Changlang district remained unsuccessful as of Sunday, with high-pressure gas continuing to escape from the compromised well since Thursday.
The incident at Well No 76 of the Kharsang Oil Field occurred Thursday afternoon when critical safety equipment malfunctioned during standard operations. The blow-out preventer (BOP)—a crucial device designed to seal wells and prevent uncontrolled releases—developed a functional fault while operators were attempting to close the newly drilled gas well.
GeoEnpro Petroleum Ltd (GEPL), which operates the facility, has brought in specialised crisis management teams from Oil India Limited and the Oil and Natural Gas Corporation to tackle the emergency.
Ravishanker Prasad, GEPL’s operation head, confirmed the severity of the situation, stating that “due to incomplete closure and gaps in the BOP, high-pressure gas flow has occurred in Well No 76.”
Prasad outlined the containment strategy being employed, noting the team is utilising “the use of LCM pills followed by high-specific-density mud in the affected well” to bring the blowout under control.
Although company officials describe the escaping gas as “non-toxic methane,” safety experts emphasize that methane is extremely flammable and that such releases often contain various hydrocarbon compounds that create serious fire risks and deteriorate air quality for nearby populations.
The Kharsang Oil Field has a troubling safety record. In 2015, a similar blowout at Well No 60 caused widespread panic, necessitated emergency evacuations of local residents, and took more than two weeks to bring under control.
A subsequent investigation by the state-level monitoring and vigilance committee, headed by Toko Anil of the Geology & Mining Department, determined the 2015 incident was “manmade and due to utter negligence and incompetence of the company.”
With this latest blowout representing a pattern of safety failures, stakeholders are calling for an independent investigation to determine what went wrong, review the company’s adherence to safety standards, and evaluate whether continued oil and gas extraction in the area poses unacceptable risks to communities and the environment.
GeoEnpro currently manages several operational wells and approximately 40 development wells across the Kharsang Oil Field.
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Arunachal Pradesh Oil Well Blowout Remains Uncontrolled, Raises Safety Concerns