Shell and Chevron halt production in the Gulf of Mexico due to storm — OilPrice

Shell and Chevron have begun evacuating workers and halting production at some offshore platforms in the Gulf of Mexico off the US coast due to the approaching Tropical Storm Isaias. OilPrice reports.

Shell and Chevron platforms

Shell is evacuating all personnel from five platforms — Mars, Olympus, Ursa, Vito and Appomattox — and suspending production activities there. Chevron is evacuating personnel and halting operations at four offshore platforms, while another five of its platforms continue operating normally.

Earlier, it was also reported that BP was evacuating employees from offshore platforms in the Gulf.

More current news is available on the UA.News Telegram channel Telegram.

Storm forecast

According to the latest forecasts, Tropical Storm Isaias, which formed at sea near Mexico on Wednesday and is moving toward the US Gulf Coast, may make landfall on Saturday. Forecasters say it could strengthen into a hurricane by the end of the week.

Michael Brennan, director of the US National Hurricane Center, previously warned of the storm's life-threatening impact on certain areas of the northern Gulf Coast beginning Friday and continuing through the weekend.

Offshore fields in the Gulf of Mexico account for about 15% of total US oil production and 5% of natural gas production. The publication notes that the hurricane could also pose a threat to oil refineries along the Gulf Coast.