(Offshore Energy) U.S. Gulf of Mexico oil operators Anadarko and Shell have evacuated workers and shut production from some of its platforms ahead of the tropical depression Harvey. Worth noting, Harvey could become the first hurricane to hit the Texas coast since 2008.
Shell on Wednesday said it had shut in production and secured its Perdido platform in preparation for severe weather associated with Tropical Depression Harvey. Shell said it was in the process of returning all personnel working on Perdido to shore.
The Perdido, one of Gulf of Mexico’s deepest developments, produces around 100,000 barrels of oil at peak.
“We continue to monitor this weather system and assess for potential impacts to our other operations in the western Gulf of Mexico.Shell’s top priority is always the safety of our people, the environment and our assets,” Shell said on Wednesday.
As for Anadarko, the company on Wednesday said that, given the potential path of Harvey, “we have safely removed all personnel and temporarily shut in production at our operated Boomvang, Gunnison, Lucius and Nansen facilities.”
The Anadarko platforms will remain shut in until the weather has cleared, and it is safe to return people to these offshore locations.
“We will continue to track Harvey and are prepared to remove additional personnel and shut in other operated facilities in the Gulf if necessary,“ Anadarko said.
Bloomberg has also reported that ExxonMobil too is shutting down some of its Gulf of Mexico assets. The newspaper said, citing an Exxon spokesperson, that the oil giant was cutting output at its Hoover production platform in the Gulf of Mexico ahead of the storm, with plans to remove workers in stages from offshore platforms that will be in the path of the storm.
According to the latest update by BP, the British oil giant was closely monitoring Tropical Depression, however, it said normal operations continued at all BP-operated offshore facilities.
“We remain prepared to respond as conditions warrant and as part of BP’s year-round efforts to plan, train and prepare for the Atlantic hurricane season,” BP said.
According to an update by the National Hurricane Center, Swells generated by Harvey are likely to affect the Texas,Louisiana, and northeast Mexico coasts by Friday. These swells are likely to cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions, NHC said.
Hurricane conditions are possible within the hurricane watch area late Friday or Friday night, with tropical storm conditions possible by Friday, the center said.
