Tropical Depression Nine disrupts oil operations in the Gulf of Mexico

U.S. oil and gas producers in the eastern parts of the Gulf of Mexico have shut production on nine platforms, moved drilling rigs and evacuated non-essential workers as Tropical Depression Nine disrupts operations.

Operators who have pulled workers off platforms in the area included BP Plc , Royal Dutch Shell, Anadarko Petroleum Corp., BHP Billiton Ltd and Hess Corp.

Transocean said it moved drilling rigs as well.

Other companies have said they were monitoring the storm, which is expected to hit Florida later this week.

The U.S. government said on Tuesday August 30, that so far operators have shut output equal to 352,946 barrels per day of oil equivalent and 346 million cubic feet per day of natural gas production in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico due the storm.

The closures represent 22 percent of normal oil output and 10 percent of natural gas production in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) said.

The shut-ins, while relatively small, represented the most significant weather-related outages for the offshore energy sector since at least 2013 in the United States.

Based on data submitted to BSEE, personnel have been evacuated from a total of nine production platforms, 1.20 percent of the 750 manned platforms in the Gulf of Mexico.

The Gulf of Mexico accounts for about 20 percent of U.S. oil production and around 5 percent of natural gas output, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

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Source: http://www.reuters.com/