The Deepwater Horizon spill three years ago put much of the exploration and production industry on alert that if another incident like this happened ever again, companies should be ready to pay a hefty price. What's surprising about the most recent incident in the Gulf is that it has gotten so little attention from the media.If anything, Hercules Offshore (HERO +0.00%) should be letting a big sigh of relief for two reasons: nobody was killed or seriously injured in the rig explosion, and the well was drilling for natural gas.
So far, BP (BP 6.38%) alone has forked up over $23 billion for the Deepwater Horizon spill. All of Hercules' assets total to about $2 billion. So had this rig been drilling for oil, it is very likely that both Hercules and private company Walter Oil & Gas, the operator of the rig, would not have been able to survive the cleanup costs. Tune into the video below, where Fool.com contributor Tyler Crowe explains why a natural gas spill is not as disastrous for Hercules, and what we can expect from the company in the future.
