Lassos

Exxon Mobil Corp., which owns a 25% stake in Thunder Horse — the largest oil and gas discovery to date in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico — this week approved an undisclosed amount of money to fund its share of development costs. Together with 75% stakeholder BP, the Houston-based major will begin construction of what will become the world’s largest semi-submersible floating production, drilling and quarters (PDQ) unit, with a total operating displacement of more than 140,000 tons. The project is scheduled for initial oil and natural gas production in 2005.