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NEW ORLEANS - Oil production in the Gulf of Mexico was almost completely shut down and most rigs and platforms evacuated, as Hurricane Gustav churned towards the United States, the US officials said Sunday.
"From the operators' reports, it is estimated that approximately 96.26 per cent of the oil production in the Gulf has been shut-in," the Department of the Interior's Minerals Management Service (MMS) said in a statement on its website.
It also estimated that more than 82 per cent of natural gas production in the Gulf was halted in the face of the storm, which is on target to plow into coastal Louisiana on Monday, potentially as a Category 4 storm with sustained winds of 150 miles (242 kilometres) per hour and storm surges up to 16 feet (4.8 metres) above normal.
The Gulf is one of the largest energy production hubs in the Americas, producing some 1.3 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil -- about one quarter of total US production of five million bpd -- and 7.4 billion cubic feet of gas per day, according to the MMS.
It said personnel have been evacuated from 518 of the total 717 manned oil and gas production platforms in the Gulf. Personnel from 86 of the total 121 rigs operating in the waters have been evacuated as well.
Platforms are stationary, while rigs are drilling facilities moved from location to location.
US giant ExxonMobil said Sunday it had completed storm preparations for its Gulf Coast oil and gas production operations.
"We have completed evacuation of all Gulf of Mexico offshore platform personnel. We are also releasing personnel from onshore facilities anticipated to be in or near the path of the storm," ExxonMobil said in a statement.
The company also said "we anticipate that we will continue to meet customer supply commitments."
On Thursday New York crude oil prices stretched as high as 120.50 dollars per barrel but closed sharply lower, before moving higher to above 117 dollars Friday before the three-day holiday weekend in the United States.
On Friday US officials said they were prepared to tap the government's strategic oil reserve, which holds an emergency supply of 707 million barrels of crude oil, if Gustav damages oil installations in the Gulf of Mexico.
- AFP/ir
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