Hefren v. Murphy Exploration & Prod. Co., USA

14 F. Supp. 3d 746, 2014 WL 1401685, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 50552
CourtDistrict Court, W.D. Louisiana
DecidedApril 9, 2014
DocketCivil Action No. 12-1899
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 14 F. Supp. 3d 746 (Hefren v. Murphy Exploration & Prod. Co., USA) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, W.D. Louisiana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Hefren v. Murphy Exploration & Prod. Co., USA, 14 F. Supp. 3d 746, 2014 WL 1401685, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 50552 (W.D. La. 2014).

Opinion

[747]*747 MEMORANDUM RULING

REBECCA F. DOHERTY, District Judge.

Pending before this Court is the “Motion for Summary Judgment” [Doc. 46] filed by defendant McDermott, Inc. (“McDer-mott”). In its motion, McDermott moves for summary judgment in its favor, arguing “the claims of Plaintiff, James Hefren, against McDermott] be dismissed” on grounds plaintiffs claims against McDer-mott are perempted under La.Rev.Stat. § 9:2772. The motion is opposed by the plaintiff [Doc. 51], and McDermott has filed a “Motion for Leave to File Reply Memorandum in Support of McDermott’s Motion for Summary Judgment” [Doc. 52], which is herein GRANTED.

For the following reasons, McDermott’s motion is GRANTED, and the plaintiffs claims against McDermott are DENIED AND DISMISSED WITH PREJUDICE

I. Factual and Procedural History

As set forth in a previous ruling issued by this Court, the instant litigation arises out of personal injuries allegedly sustained by plaintiff James Hefren, an employee of Murphy Exploration & Production Company, USA (“Murphy”), while working on Murphy’s FRONT RUNNER Spar as a lead operator.1 This Court adopts the undisputed facts as set forth by McDermott in its motion, except for the facts related to the issue of whether the FRONT RUNNER Spar is permanently attached to the seabed, that issue being the chiefly disputed fact for the purposes of this motion. The undisputed facts are as follows:2

• On March 15, 2002, Murphy, identified as “OWNER”, and McDermott, identified as “CONTRACTOR”, executed the EPCI Contract for the design, engineering, procurement, construction/fabrication, installation, integration, hookup, testing, commissioning, etc. of the FRONT RUNNER Spar. Under the EPCI Contract, McDermott agreed “to provide or arrange to have provided all engineering, design, services, personnel, labor, facilities, supervision, testing, commissioning, quality control, materials, equipment, construction equipment, etc. needed to perform and complete the WORK.”
• Article 2.1 of the EPCI Contract defines ‘WORK” as follows:
The WORK shall consist of the complete design, engineering, procurement, construction/fabrication, installation, integration, hookup, testing, commissioning, etc. of the FACILITY including baseline and supplemental parts as a total integrated turnkey package ready for production operations to commence, all as more fully described in this Article 2 and the CONTRACT SPECIFICATIONS, Exhibit A hereto.
• Article 1.1.1 defines “FACILITY” as the complete integrated facility described in Article 2, herein, including the Hull, Topsides, Mooring System [748]*748and Riser System and all other items being designed, engineered, developed, procured, fabricated, constructed, installed, hooked-up, inspected, tested, commissioned, and made ready to commence production operations incorporating baseline and supplemental requirements pursuant to [the EPCI Contract].”
• Additionally, the EPCI Contract defines “SITE” to mean “the FACILITY location in Green Canyon Block 338, Gulf of Mexico.” The FACILITY referenced in the EPCI Contract is Murphy’s FRONT RUNNER Spar.
• In May 2004, the FRONT RUNNER Spar was affixed to the seafloor of the outer continental shelf adjacent to the State of Louisiana. On or about August 4, 2004, McDermott delivered the FRONT RUNNER Spar to Murphy, which accepted delivery.
• The FRONT RUNNER Spar is a platform facility that consists of a Mooring System, Hull, and Topsides. The Topsides consists of three (3) decks (drilling, production and cellar decks) used for crew quarters, drilling, and a production facility.
• The FRONT RUNNER Spar was designed for the removal of petroleum from the seabed of CG 338.
• From the FRONT RUNNER Spar, Murphy produces oil and natural gas through eight (8) tensioned risers which carry recovered petroleum and gas from eight (8) corresponding wells to the spar.
• Additionally, recovered petroleum from three (3) other oil and gas fields (the Quatrain field located in Block 382, Green Canyon Area; the Daniel Boone field, located in Block 646, Green Canyon Area; and, the Front Runner South field, located in Block 339, Green Canyon Area) are transported to the FRONT RUNNER Spar through three (3) subsea tie backs.
• Once the FRONT RUNNER Spar receives the recovered petroleum and gas from the eight (8) wells and three (3) fields, the oil and natural gas are separated by the production equipment of the FRONT RUNNER Spar.
• Thereafter, the processed oil is transported from the FRONT RUNNER Spar to shore via an oil export line.
• Similarly, the processed natural gas is transported from the spar to shore via a gas export line.
• The FRONT RUNNER Spar is an offshore platform affixed to the sea floor in GC 338 on the OCS. The hull is permanently ballasted and attached to its mooring system consisting of nine mooring cables attached to nine separate anchor pilings each driven approximately 220 ft. into the seabed. The facility is moored with a permanent, taut catenary system. The mooring is comprised of jacketed steel spiral strand wire with chain at each end. In addition to its connection to the seabed by mooring cables and piles, the facility is further secured through connection to eight tensioned risers, which carry the recovered petroleum from the wells to the SPAR facility.
• The FRONT RUNNER Spar’s mooring system moors the Front Runner to the sea floor through nine (9) permanent anchors driven 220 feet into the seabed in Green Canyon Block 338 of the Gulf of Mexico and nine (9) anchor lines. The anchor [749]*749lines attach the hull of the FRONT RUNNER Spar to the permanent anchors. The FRONT RUNNER Spar is further secured by eight (8) tensioned risers, which carry recovered petroleum and gas from wells to the Front Runner. Additionally, the FRONT RUNNER Spar is secured in place by three (3) subsea tie backs, which also carry recovered petroleum and gas from three (3) wells to the Front Runner.
• The FRONT RUNNER Spar platform was designed for a predicted twenty-year life span during which the Front Runner is planned to remain permanently affixed at its present site. Since its original placement on site in May 2004, the SPAR facility has not moved from the Green Canyon Block 338 location; and Murphy has no intention of moving the facility during its useful life.
• Once the FRONT RUNNER Spar was installed in Green Canyon Block 338 of the Gulf of Mexico, it could be repositioned slightly within its anchor pattern only by tightening and/or loosening its anchor lines. The process of tightening and/or loosening the FRONT RUNNER Spar’s anchor lines allows the Front Runner to be repositioned slightly within its anchor pattern.

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Bluebook (online)
14 F. Supp. 3d 746, 2014 WL 1401685, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 50552, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/hefren-v-murphy-exploration-prod-co-usa-lawd-2014.