Gulf of Mexico operators resuming normal ops following Storm Nate

Offshore oil and gas operators in the Gulf of Mexico have restarted almost the entirety of their oil production following Tropical Storm Nate with under one percent of output remaining shut-in.

According to a final Storm Nate report released on Saturday by the U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), personnel remain evacuated from a total of 10 production platforms, which is 1.36 percent of the 737 manned platforms in the Gulf of Mexico.

As far as the rigs are concerned, all personnel have returned to the previously evacuated non-dynamically positioned (DP) rigs while all relocated DP rigs returned to the Gulf.

From operator reports, it is estimated that approximately 0.72 percent of the current oil production in the Gulf of Mexico remains shut-in, which equates to 12,614 barrels of oil per day. It is also estimated that approximately 1.12 percent of the natural gas production or 36.12 million cubic feet per day in the Gulf of Mexico is shut-in.

The BSEE added that, now that the storm has passed, operators would continue to re-board and inspect facilities. Once all standard checks have been completed, production from undamaged facilities will be brought back online immediately.

No damages on rigs and platforms have been reported as a result of the storm.