In 2020, the US Gulf of Mexico has seen eight named storms, most escalated to a requirement for offshore facilities to conduct evacuations or temporary well shutdowns, therefore hampering the results of energy companies.
According to Erik Milito, president of trade group National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA), this year’s oil production from the US offshore Gulf would slump by 200,000 bpd compared to the beginning. Still, some of the lost output could be recovered in the upcoming weeks, he opined.
One clear example is Hurricane Zeta, the latest on the list. Over this week, Zeta has slashed 4 million barrels, cutting nearly 85% of daily offshore Gulf of Mexico oil output, and close to 58% of its natural gas output.
Hess Corp. estimated that its result in the third quarter would see a decline of 25,000 bpd, following the 19,000 bpd loss in the prior quarter.
W&T Offshore said that the shut-ins have burdened its costs by an additional USD5 million and in the fourth quarter it would likely see its oil and gas production drop below analysts’ forecasts although its production platforms did not endure significant damage from the repeated storms.
Likewise, on Thursday, Royal Dutch Shell stated that another Gulf of Mexico output was hurt by disruptions away from its platforms. The company has also restarted the onshore crude-oil processing unit which was hit by the power disruptions from the storm.
