Mississippi Canyon


The Mississippi Canyon is an undersea canyon, part of the Mississippi Submarine Valley in the North-central Gulf of Mexico, south of Louisiana. According to the U.S. Geological Survey GLORIA Mapping Program, it is the dominant feature of the north-central Gulf of Mexico. According to GCAGS Transactions, it has an average width of, and a length of. The US Minerals Management Service applies the name Mississippi Canyon to numbered federal oil and gas lease blocks over a large offshore area centered on, but mostly outside, the submarine canyon.

Oil and gas exploration and production

According to "Deepwater Gulf of Mexico 2004: America's Expanding Frontier", a report issued by the Minerals Management Service Gulf of Mexico OCS Region, of the ten deepwater discoveries in water depths greater than 7,000 ft, three were in the Mississippi Canyon area: Aconcagua project, area/block MC305, deep; and Camden Hills project, MC348, deep, both discovered in 1999; and Blind Faith project, MC696, deep, discovered in 2001. In a separate section of the same report, note is made of acreage in the Thunder Horse project, MC778, acquired in 1988. Other projects noted for Mississippi Canyon include Thunder Horse areas/blocks MC775-778 and MC819-822, listed as completed grid PEA by BP.
An MMS list of 80 development systems of productive deepwater Gulf of Mexico projects from 1979 to 2003 includes 29 projects in the Mississippi Canyon area:
Year of 1st
Production		Project NameOperatorBlockWater
Depth ft.		System Type
1979CognacShellMC1941,023Fixed Platform
1984LenaExxonMobilMC2801,000Compliant Tower
1991AmberjackBPMC1091,100Fixed Platform
1992AlabasterExxonMobilMC4851,438Subsea
1993DiamondKerr McGeeMC4452,095Subsea
1993ZinkExxonMobilMC3541,478Subsea
1996MarsShellMC8072,933TLP/Subsea
1997MensaShellMC7315,318Subsea
1999GeminiChevronTexacoMC2923,393Subsea
1999PlutoMarinerMC6742,828Subsea
1999UrsaShellMC8091,478TLP
2000EuropaShellMC9353,870Subsea
2000KingShellMC7643,250Subsea
2001CrosbyShellMC8994,440Subsea
2001MC68WalterMC681,360Subsea
2001MicaExxonMobilMC2114,580Subsea
2002AconcaguaTotalFinaElfMC3057,100Subsea
2002Camden HillsMarathonMC3487,216Subsea
2002Horn MountainBPMC1275,400Spar
2002KingBPMC845,000Subsea
2002PrincessShellMC7653,600Subsea
2003East Anstey/Na KikaShellMC6076,590FPS/Subsea
2003Fourier/Na KikaShellMC5226,950FPS/Subsea
2003GooseStatoilMC7511,624Subsea
2003Herschel/Na KikaShellMC5206,739FPS/Subsea
2003MatterhornTotalFinaElfMC2432,850TLP
2003MedusaMurphyMC5822,223Spar
2003PardnerAnadarkoMC4011,139Subsea
2003ZiaDevonMC4961,804Subsea

Five of the top 20 deepwater Gulf of Mexico production blocks for 2000-01 were in the Mississippi Canyon, including the top 2: Project Mars, deep, of oil equivalent ; project Ursa, deep, of BOE; project Mensa,, of BOE; Cognac,, of BOE; Crosby,, of BOE, all managed by Shell.

''Deepwater Horizon'' explosion

On April 20, 2010, the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig, located in the MMS Mississippi Canyon block 252, which is about off the Louisiana coast, suffered a catastrophic explosion; it sank a day-and-a-half later. Although initial reports indicated that relatively little oil had leaked, by April 27 it was stated by BP that approximately of oil per day were issuing from the wellhead, below the surface on the ocean floor. The resulting oil slick quickly expanded to cover hundreds of square miles of ocean surface, posing a threat to marine life and adjacent coastal wetlands. On June 10, the Flow Rate Group from the Deepwater Horizon Incident Joint Information Center reported that they have determined that the estimated flow rate from the out of control well head has been to per day.