(DNV: Houston) --  Det Norske Veritas (DNV) has been contracted by the Joint Investigation Team (JIT) of the the U.S. Department of the Interior and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for the forensic examination of the blowout preventer (BOP) and lower marine riser package that was fitted to the Macondo well in the Gulf of Mexico, the site of the Deepwater Horizon disaster and oil spill.

The BOP, a 50-foot, 300-ton safety valve assembly, has been extracted and taken to NASA’s secure facility in Michoud, Lousiana, where it is in the custody of the JIT. Chain of custody and evidence preservation protocols to ensure the proper handling of all evidentiary material have been in effect since the BOP was first retrieved in August.

The final forensic testing protocol will be developed by DNV, in consultation with various commercial, academic, and governmental organizations, and will be approved by the JIT prior to the start of testing.

DNV is utilizing its forensic investigation expertise from the Columbus, Ohio, office and its subsea equipment expertise from the Houston office in the project.

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