New Gulf Drilling Tower The Vinegarroon, a huge offshore drilling tower, stands in the Gulf of Mexico, about 12 miles off shore from Cameron Louisiana. The unit was built by R G Le Torneau of Longview Texas for the Zapata off shore company of Houston at a cost of one and a quarter million pounds. The equipment can drill to a depth of 20,000 feet in water up to 100 feet deep. There is a heliport on a raised platform at the left. 12th May 1957