Damage to drill ship assessed in wake of Hurricane Ida

摘要

As the year moved towards the close of the third quarter, offshore drilling continued to gain momentum, registering the largest positive gains in contracted jack-ups and floaters of 2021. Still, the biggest story in the offshore drilling sector was the recovery of the US Gulf of Mexico from Hurricane Ida. Hurricane Ida passed through on 29 August, shutting in about 95% of production from the oil patch, damaging rigs, offshore infrastructure, injuring personnel and causing environmental incidents. The US Coast Guard (USCG) is prioritising nearly 350 reported incidents for further investigation by state, local, and federal authorities in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida. The USCG has been conducting overflights to identify any oil spills or discharges. In response to the hurricane, the US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) reported personnel were evacuated from just over half (288) of the 560 manned production platforms, and from all 11 non-dynamically-positioned (DP) drilling rigs and seven of the 15 DP-capable units. As of 6 September, BSEE reported 83.87% of oil production and 80.78% of gas production remains shut in.