The Gulf of Mexico (GOM) has long been a hotspot for crude oil and natural gas production, but technological advancements have pushed the boundaries of what’s possible in deepwater operations, opening previously inaccessible reservoirs. Chevron is the first to deploy new equipment capable of handling the more extreme pressures found very deep below the seafloor. In today’s RBN blog, we’ll highlight the project — known as Anchor — and explore how this new technology is paving the way for similar developments.
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Before the Shale Revolution, the GOM was paramount to U.S. oil and gas production. When a major hurricane swept across the Gulf toward Louisiana and Texas, oil and natural gas prices spiked significantly because storm-related production shut-ins could squeeze supply for a few days or more, depending on whether offshore infrastructure was damaged (see Riders On The Storm). Today, the region remains important for energy resources and infrastructure, accounting for approximately 14% of total U.S. crude oil output and 5% of total U.S. dry gas production. Additionally, about half of U.S. refining capacity is located along the Gulf Coast, where GOM production — much of it heavier (and less abundant) than light sweet shale oil — is an important feedstock source.
(Offshore production will be a major theme at RBN’s upcoming NACON conference, to be held Thursday, October 24, at the Royal Sonesta Hotel in Houston. Click here for details.)
A decade after its discovery and five years after making a final investment decision (FID), Chevron, alongside its partner TotalEnergies, recently commenced production at their $5.7 billion Anchor platform (yellow star to lower left in Figure 1 below). Located about 140 miles off the Louisiana coast, the development consists of seven subsea wells at the seafloor tied back via risers — or pipes — to a semi-submersible floating production unit (FPU). Anchor operates in water depths of around 5,000 feet. While other platforms operate in greater depths — including Chevron’s Jack St. Malo, in waters 7,000 feet deep (yellow star just below Anchor) — what sets Anchor apart is its reservoir pressure. It is the first GOM project to produce at pressures reaching 20,000 pounds per square inch (psi), with reservoir depths reaching 34,000 feet and temperatures up to 250 degrees Fahrenheit.
Figure 1. Louisiana Offshore Crude Oil Infrastructure. Source: RBN
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About the song
“Got Me Under Pressure” was written by Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill and Frank Beard and appears as the second song on side one of ZZ Top’s eighth studio album, Eliminator. The album was unique for the band in that it used synthesizers, drum machines and sequencers for the rhythm section tracks, supplemented by Billy Gibbons’s guitar. The album featured the vocals of Gibbons and ZZ Top bass player Dusty Hill. The first draft of the album was done at drummer Frank Beard’s house in Houston, with Linden Hudson doing most of the programming and engineering. Billy Gibbons finished the album at Ardent Studios in Memphis, with Bill Ham producing and Terry Manning engineering. Manning said Gibbons used a Dean Z electric guitar and Legend Rock n Roll Combo amp for the Eliminator guitar sound. There is controversy about the album in that Linden Hudson claims that he co-wrote most of the material on it with Gibbons. The band denied that and has Hudson listed as “pre-production engineer” on the album credits. They later settled a three-year legal battle with Hudson by paying him $600,000 and giving him a writing credit on the song “Thug.” In spite of the credits on the album, Hill and Beard did not play on the record, letting the new technology represent the rhythm section, and setting a new standard for how rock records sounded in the early 1980s.
Eliminator was released in March 1983 and went to #9 on the Billboard Top 200 Albums chart. “Got Me Under Pressure” was released as the second single from the album in May 1983 and went to #18 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Singles chart. Eliminator has been certified Diamond (10 million copies sold) by the Recording Industry Association of America. Billy Gibbons had Don Thelan of Buffalo Motor Cars in Paramount, CA, build him a chopped hot rod 1933 Ford coupe named “The Eliminator.” The car would be featured on the album cover and all videos of the band from the Eliminator album. The videos were a huge hit on MTV, with heavy rotation. Personnel as listed on the album cover of the record were: Billy Gibbons (guitars, vocals), Dusty Hill (bass, backing vocals, lead vocals on “I Got the Six” and “Bad Girl”) and Frank Beard (drums, percussion).
ZZ Top is an American rock trio formed in Houston in 1969 by Billy Gibbons, Dusty Hill and Frank Beard. Bassist Hill and drummer Beard were previously in the Dallas psychedelic blues band, American Blues, and guitarist Gibbons was a member of the Houston rock band The Moving Sidewalks. They have released 15 studio albums, four live albums, one soundtrack album, seven compilation albums, three EPs, and 38 singles. They have sold more than 50 million records worldwide. They have won three MTV Video Music Awards, have a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004. After bassist Dusty Hill's death in July 2021, at Hill's request, he was replaced in the band by his longtime guitar tech, Elwood Francis. They continue to record and tour and will appear with Lynyrd Skynyrd on the Sharp Dressed Simple Man Tour, and as solo artists, through December 2024.
