The next step in trying to plug the leaking Deepwater Horizon oil well is to implement a Lower Marine Riser Package, which is basically a more advanced version of the containment dome that BP tried initially, which was a total failure.

BP explains it like this:

This would first involve removing the damaged riser from the top of the BOP, leaving a cleanly-cut pipe at the top of the BOP’s LMRP. The LMRP cap, an engineered containment device with a sealing grommet, would be connected to a riser from the Discoverer Enterprise drillship and then placed over the LMRP with the intention of capturing most of the oil and gas flowing from the well and transporting it to the drillship on the surface. The LMRP cap is already on site and it is anticipated that this option will be available for deployment by the end of May.

That was from May 25th, because BP planned for something like this simultaneously with Top Kill.

According to BP COO Doug Suttles, the process will take 4-7 days, according to MSNBC.



Here's a diagram put out by BP, and here's an open thread on LMRP at The Oil Drum, which should have a great comments thread on the process.:











