As oil and gas companies began shutting offshore production before the first tropical storm of the season in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, experts said restarting wells and refineries will take longer and prove more costly this year because of COVID-19.
FILE PHOTO: A massive drilling derrick is pictured on BP's Thunder Horse Oil Platform in the Gulf of Mexico, 150 miles from the Louisiana coast, May 11, 2017. REUTERS/Jessica Resnick-Ault/File Photo
“There is an economic hit when a hurricane comes through,” said Turner, and for smaller producers strained by low prices a bad storm may be the last straw for their production.U.S. energy companies face their first test of hurricane restarts under COVID-19 this week from the approaching Tropical Storm Cristobal. Three have already evacuated workers and shut some production.
COVID-19 already has raised costs and added travel headaches for offshore crews and complicated working conditions for refinery operators. Royal Dutch Shell hired helicopters to individually ferry out three workers on the same platform suspected of having the virus to isolate them from one another, said a Shell spokeswoman
Some 120 offshore Gulf of Mexico workers have tested positive for the virus this year, and a greater number were evacuated preemptively, according to a National Ocean Industries Association spokesman. Under normal circumstances, “we do not expect the challenges associated with COVID-19 to significantly impact our production deferrals,” said BHP spokeswoman Judy Dane.At Gulf Coast refineries, the crews assigned to remain onsite during a storm will wear masks if they cannot be six feet away from another person while working at control boards, a person familiar with the matter said.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Oil prices hit 3-month highs on expectations OPEC+ will extend deepest-ever production cutsIn April, OPEC+ agreed to cut oil production by a record 9.7 million barrels per day (b/d), approximately 10% of global output.
Read more »
Brent oil rises to $40 amid hopes for output cuts, recoveryOil rose on Wednesday, with Brent at $40 for the first time since March, as optimism mounted that major producers will extend production cuts and a recovery from the coronavirus pandemic will spur fuel demand.
Read more »
Venezuela's oil exports sink to 17-year low, choked by U.S. sanctionsVenezuela's oil exports plummeted in May to their lowest level since 2003 as U.S. sanctions choked exports and two Mexican firms that had acted as intermediaries for Venezuelan crude sales stopped receiving oil, Refinitiv Eikon data and internal shipping documents from state-run energy company PDVSA showed.
Read more »
Oil leaps as major producers look to extend record production cuts through JulyOil continued its climb to past highs on Tuesday amid reports that OPEC+ members are eyeing extensions to record production cuts. Major producer...
Read more »
BlackRock focuses on China credit, oil and travel in AsiaThe world's biggest asset manager, BlackRock Inc, called out oil stocks, domestic tourism and debt in China and India as investment opportunities in its Asia outlook on Wednesday.
Read more »
China drives global oil demand recovery out of coronavirus collapseChina's oil demand has recovered to more than 90% of the levels seen before the coronavirus pandemic struck early this year, a surprisingly robust rebound that could be mirrored elsewhere in the third quarter as more countries emerge from lockdowns.
Read more »