RIASSUNTO
Driven partly by the US Department of the Interior’s (DOI) Notice to Lessees and Operators (NTL) 2010-G05 for decommissioning of idle wells and structures on active leases in the Gulf of Mexico’s (GOM) Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), decommissioning activities are outpacing historical levels (Fig. 1 and Table 1). The NTL, also known as the Idle Iron NTL, became effective in October 2010 and applies to the plugging of wells and decommissioning of offshore infrastructure, which includes fixed platforms, pipelines, wells, caissons, and well protectors.