Skimmer sent by Kevin Costner’s company to do work in the oil-fouled Gulf of Mexico

Kevin Costner’s oil skimmer to work in fouled Gulf

PORT FOURCHON, La. — Kevin Costner’s company has sent an oil-skimming vessel to help clean some of the crude that has fouled the Gulf of Mexico.

The actor told workers and visitors Thursday who had come to see the latest in the fight against the oil spill that “the machine I once dreamed of is here to help you.”

The Ella G, now one of the Vessels of Opportunity, was retrofitted to receive oil and water from the skimmer, separate the oil and place it in storage tanks, and return the cleaned water to the Gulf. It had once been an offshore supply barge.

The system was built in 10 days, and BP chief operating officer Doug Suttles says the system offers many advantages. He says it can remove more oil, stay at sea indefinitely, and skim in seas up to 10 feet. Most skimmers can’t work in seas higher than 4 feet.