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is that business in the Gulf hasn't been very good this year. ?But for us, business did pick up because ofopportunities created by aggressive, facility-maintenance and corrosion- control programs by a handful of oil- and-gas exploration and production companies with a large Gulf pres- ence. They've been trying to keep up with and stay ahead of BOEMREregulations since last summer's spill.? Barousse continued, ?That, in turn, resulted in high utilization of our utility-supply vessels, which allowed us to bring in some addi- tional assets.? Fleet Operators owns and charters supply vessels for the offshore oil and gas industry. Tempering his remarks, he added, ?this type of facility maintenance and corrosion control is seasonal work for the most part, so I only expect it to last as long as the weath- er cooperates.? Based on very slow winters in the last two to three years, especially last winter, he predicts that once the weather turns unfavorable for construction and maintenance- type work, business will slow tremendously. ?When it turns cooler, I wouldn't be surprised to see stacksof offshore vessels in ports and bay- ous by Thanksgiving.? ?We're also faced with more gov- ernment Safety and Environmental Management Systems or SEMS reg- ulations going into effect onNovember 15--which will burden those vessel owner-operators who aren't prepared,? Barousse said. TRAFFICGROWS Chett Chiasson, executive director at Louisiana's Port Fourchon, said Recent Gulf Drilling Permits Issued by BOEMRE as of Sept. 23, 2011Shallow Water: A total of 78 new shallow water well permits have been issued since the implementation of new safety and environmental standards on June 8, 2010. Fifteen shallow permits are pending, with 10 having been returned to the operator for more information. Deepwater: The deep water moratorium was lifted on Oct. 12, 2010, and is the refer- ence for the inclusion of new rules in applications. Deep water permits requiring subsea containment: Since an applicant first successfully demon- strated containment capabilities in mid-February, the agency has approved 138 of deepwater permits for 41 unique wells, with 22 permits pending. Eighteen permits having been returned to the operator with requests for more information, particularly regarding containment. Deepwater activi- ties not requiring subsea containment: Since the implementation of new safety and environmental standards last winter, 46 of these permits have been approved, with one permit pending and one permit returned to the operator with requests for additional information. Activities in this cate- gory include water injection wells and procedures using surface blowout preventers. Source: BOEMRE MN#10 (32-49):MN 2011 Layouts 10/5/2011 10:38 AM Page 39