Hurricane Isaias has shut in nearly 1.46 million barrels per day of U.S. Gulf oil production, according to figures the Marine Minerals Administration released on Friday. Operators reported 1,458,814 bpd offline, equal to 71.51% of current Gulf oil output. Natural gas production has been affected as well, with 1.26 billion cubic feet per day shut in, or 58.84% of Gulf gas output.
The figures represent a steep escalation over a short period. The shutdown began with just 185,120 bpd offline three days ago, and the total has risen sharply since then. The agency reported 1.28 million bpd shut in on Thursday, meaning operators halted a further 176,000 bpd between the two daily updates. The agency has issued updated figures as the storm has developed.
Operators have also carried out evacuations, with 129 reported in the agency's Friday figures. The shut-ins and evacuations together underline the scale of the disruption to offshore operations across the Gulf. Gas production, at 58.84% offline, has been curtailed to a somewhat lesser degree than oil in percentage terms.
For operators in the Gulf, the numbers describe a production base that has been largely idled within a matter of days. More than seven in ten barrels of current Gulf oil output are offline, alongside a majority of the region's natural gas production. The pace of the shutdown, from 185,120 bpd to more than 1.45 million bpd in three days, shows how quickly a hurricane can curtail offshore output and gives a clear measure of how much U.S. supply is temporarily offline.
Source: Oilprice
