Brent oil price near $77 as BP oil cap results see a delay

Brent oil prices open trading today close to the $77 mark and look to have some support as investors await the latest BP oil cap results at the troubled Gulf oil spill, however there are delays in testing.

In London, Brent crude oil futures for August 2010 delivery was at $76.76 a barrel at 09.00 GMT on the ICE Futures Exchange.

BP Oil Cap Pressure Test Delays

In complex operations being carried out 1.6km on the sea floor, BP were supposed to start shutting down the valves on the capping stack, monitoring the pressure as it goes, yesterday, however BP has delayed a key test on its new well cap.

Vital pressure testing has been delayed so that BP and the US coast guard can undertake further analysis of the task in hand.

The tests, due to last between 6 and 48 hours, was originally scheduled for late Tuesday on BP’s newly installed “capping stack,” which has a better seal than the last cap placed on the well and aims to stop oil from spewing out of the failed blowout preventer.

BP must perform checks on the integrity of the well because if the well is damaged, then the pressure caused by the cap could create additional leaks and make the use of relief wells more difficult.

The question is whether the oil well can withstand the pressure caused by closing the cap on top of the damaged Gulf oil wellhead.

If the steel casing lining the well is not intact, the results could be serious, creating leaks that would be impossible to contain, unlike the manageable spill now coming out of the oil well.