Q4000

---

title: "Q4000" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["2002-ships", "semi-submersibles", "service-vessels"] description: "Oil field service vessel" topic_path: "general/2002-ships" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Q4000" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Oil field service vessel ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox ship"]

Field	Value
display_title	ital
section1	{{Infobox ship/image
image	Helix Q4000.jpg
image_caption	Drilling vessel Helix Q4000 at sea in the Gulf of Mexico.
section2	{{Infobox ship/career
name	Q4000
owner	Cal Dive Title XI, Inc.
operator	Helix Energy Solutions Group
registry	, Houston, Texas
ordered	1999
builder	*Keppel AmFELS
original_cost
laid_down	18 December 1999
completed	07 March 2002
identification	*ABS class no.: 0239326
status	Operational
notes
section3	{{Infobox ship/characteristics
class	*American Bureau of Shipping
tonnage
length	95.2 m
beam	62.8 m
depth	29.6 m
deck_clearance	9436 mm
speed	12 kts
crew	133
notes
::

|display_title=ital |section1={{Infobox ship/image | image = Helix Q4000.jpg | image_caption = Drilling vessel Helix Q4000 at sea in the Gulf of Mexico.

|section2={{Infobox ship/career | name = Q4000 | owner = Cal Dive Title XI, Inc. | operator = Helix Energy Solutions Group | registry = , Houston, Texas | ordered = 1999 | builder =*Keppel AmFELS

• Brownsville, Texas | original_cost = | yard_number = | way_number = | laid_down = 18 December 1999 | launched = | completed = 07 March 2002 | christened = | acquired = | maiden_voyage = | in_service = | out_of_service = | identification =*ABS class no.: 0239326
• Call sign: WDA6676
• DNV ID: 24342

| status = Operational | notes =

|section3={{Infobox ship/characteristics | hide_header = | header_caption = | class =*American Bureau of Shipping

• A1, Column Stabilized MODU | tonnage = | displacement = | length = 95.2 m | beam = 62.8 m | height = | draught = | draft = | depth = 29.6 m | decks = | deck_clearance = 9436 mm | power = | propulsion = | speed = 12 kts | capacity = | crew = 133 | notes = Q4000 is a multi-purpose oil field construction and intervention vessel ordered in 1999 by Cal Dive International, and was built at the Keppel AmFELS shipyard in Brownsville, Texas for $180 million. She was delivered in 2002 and operates under the flag of the United States. She is operated by Helix Energy Solutions Group. The original Q4000 concept was conceived and is owned by SPD/McClure. The design was later modified by Bennett Offshore, which was selected to develop both the basic and detailed design.

Q4000 has a column-stabilized semisubmersible design that combines dynamically positioned station-keeping with a large deck space, significant deck load capacity and a high transit speed of 12 knots. The vessel provides a stable platform for a wide variety of tasks, including subsea completion, decommissioning and coiled tubing deployment, and she is specifically designed for oil well intervention and construction in depths of up to 3000 meters of water.

Specifications

The design of the Q4000 includes the following features:

• Dynamic positioning with 6 azimuthing thrusters
• A multi-purpose Huisman designed three-sided tower capable of fulfilling all traditional derrick roles
• Two Huisman cranes with lifting capacities of 160 and 360 Tonnes
• Seabed access to 3048 meters
• An 11.9 meter x 6.4 meter moonpool
• A 7 3/8 inch intervention riser system (The vessel was refitted with a slimbore drilling capability in 2008).
• A 3000-meter heavy weather ROV system
• An overall deck capacity of 4,000 tonnes

''Deepwater Horizon'' spill response

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/87/Q4000_and_Discoverer_Enterprise_flares.jpg" caption="''Q4000'' and ''[[Discoverer Enterprise]]'' flare off gas at the site of drilling operations at the ''Deepwater Horizon'' response site in the Gulf of Mexico at night 8 July 2010."] ::

Q4000 was in the Gulf of Mexico participating in the response to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. The vessel was used to position the large containment dome and also to attempt the "top kill" in which large quantities of drilling mud were pumped down the Q4000 drilling pipe into the failed Deepwater Horizon blowout preventer valve (BOP) in an attempt to stop the flow of oil. Both attempts failed to stop the oil leaking from the well. After removal of the failed riser and drill pipe on the Horizon BOP, a capping stack sealed the top of the well on July 15, 2010, stopping the flow of oil into the Gulf of Mexico. The Q4000 was used in a successful static kill procedure, where mud, followed by cement, was pumped into the well, sealing the leak at the source. The Deepwater Horizon BOP was secured on the deck of the Q4000 around 10:20pm on September 4, 2010. The failed Deepwater Horizon BOP was collected as key evidence into the investigation of the causes of the oil spill.

References

References

1. (2010). "ABS Record: ''Q4000''". American Bureau of Shipping.
2. {{cite ship register
3. (12 April 2002). "Cal Dive takes delivery of Q4000". Offshore Shipping Online.
4. Noah Brenner; Anthea Pitt. (28 May 2010). "BP calls in FPSO for Macondo". Upstream Online.
5. "Basic and detailed design of the Q4000".
6. (October 2010). "Q4000". Helix Well Ops.
7. "Making it right - highlights | Gulf of Mexico response | BP".

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::