Oil Operators In GoM Begin Evacuations Ahead Newest Tropical Storm

Oil companies are beginning to evacuate personnel ahead of Tropic Storm Rafael as Gulf energy operators hunker down for yet another high-seas spectacle.

BP, Chevron, Equinor, and Shell have been down this road before, ushering non-essential personnel out of harm’s way while keeping production humming—for now. BP started shuffling personnel off platforms like Argos, Thunder Horse, and Mad Dog. Chevron, too, followed suit, relocating folks from platforms including Big Foot and Petronius.

Meanwhile, Shell has taken preemptive measures, moving workers from Appomattox, Vito, and Enchilada-Salsa. Equinor, playing it safe, shut down production entirely with a full evacuation on the docket.

Rafael, currently whipping around with winds of 60 mph may reach hurricane status by the time it passes over the Cayman Islands and skips toward Cuba. However, the National Hurricane Center warns that Rafael might fizzle back to tropical storm status before reaching the Gulf Coast—though past storms this year, including Francine, Helene, and Milton, each caused their own disruptions.

Rafael is threatening to take offline some 4.9 million barrels of oil production daily in the Gulf, according to data compiled by Earth Science Associates, as well as up to 6.39 billion cu ft of natural gas production.

Rafael would be the 17th named storm this Atlantic hurricane season and the tenth one since September 24. Earlier in the year, the Energy Information Administration predicted up to 25named storms for the season, warning that would wreak more havoc on the American oil and gas industry than ever before.

With the U.S. election and Middle East turmoil already adding to market jitters, Rafael adds another layer of complexity to prices.

WTI was trading up 1.54% on Tuesday early afternoon, with Brent up to $76.14 (+$1.06) on the day.

By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com

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