The Jupiter accommodation platform in the Gulf of Mexico has partially sunk after listing heavily on Tuesday, operator Pemex said.
“After several attempts to rescue the platform failed, it partially sank at 14:30 (local time),” said Pemex in a statement.
“No one is injured, the entire staff is safe.”
Water depth in the area is 38 meters, and given the dimensions of the semi-submersible platform, which is 50 meters wide, the partially sunk floatel remains 13 metres above water levels.
An incident onboard the floatel was first reported at 7:39am yesterday morning when 638 personnel were immediately evacuated to the nearby Abkatun-Alfa platform.
It is believed that a valve problem caused the unit to take in water.
“According to procedures, we applied the emergency response plan of the system and the majority of staff onboard were immediately evacuated,” said Pemex.
“Seventy five crew members remained to meet the contingency.”
Specialised divers attempted to review water entry into the vessel and seal the pontoon, but the work had to be suspended for the safety of the divers, said Pemex.
“Bilge pumps from the installation were insufficient to counteract the ingress of water so we proceeded to complete evacuation at 13:30,” said the operator.
The floatel, which is owned by Cotemar and managed by PEP, has 2075 barrels of diesel stored in the pontoons and 82 barrels of jet fuel stored in containers on the deck.
“There is no evidence of leakage,” said Pemex.
The company said it now plans to start investigations into the cause of the incident and review salvage options for the platform.
