Introduction to Drilling Offshore Oil Wells:
3D seismic scan of the area in a large grid is made by ships pulling acoustic geophones that bounce a large explosive sound into the sea and it bounces of the hard layers of formation below the sea bed. These layers are captured and displayed to show their features and depths. Geologist are searching for folds in the formations or interesting formation features that might contain oil or gas reservoirs.
Once a site is identified, the boundaries of the site are identified and surveyed by the local governing body of Energy and Resources. Enviromental impact studies are created to make sure no adverse negative affect is made to the ecology of the area.
Once all the regulatory paperwork is approved the bidding process is started to grant oil companies the rights to drill and produce within the confines of the site. The winning bidder is granted approval to start the drilling process.
The oil companies will generally look for outside investors and contractors to reduce the risk of each venture. These contractors bring on equipment like the rig and the all the service companies associated with a rigsite.