Total has two plans to deal with gas leak

OIL firm Total, which wants to fly experts to a North Sea oil platform to plan how to cap a well that has been spewing gas for the past week, is due to discuss the safety of the scheme with experts today.

Total’s Elgin platform is enveloped in a huge gas cloud, and company officials will discuss with the Health and Safety Executive the risks involved in sending experts there on a helicopter.

Total wants to stop the gas leak in two ways; firstly, by injecting drilling mud to “kill” the well, which would involve sending experts to the wellhead platform; and, secondly, by drilling two relief wells – a safer, slower, more expensive solution.