Two Shell’s Gulf of Mexico Offshore Platforms Temporarily Shut Down

(Credit: Shell)

Oil major Shell said output at two of its offshore platforms in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico has been temporarily shut due to a shutdown of the Hoover Offshore Oil Pipeline System (HOOPS).

The top producer in the U.S. Gulf said it expects its Whale and Perdido platforms, which were shut in on Monday night, to resume production by the end of Tuesday.

Whale was producing about 90,000 barrels per day (bpd), while Perdido's output stood at around 57,000 bpd in September, market analytics firm Energy Aspects estimated.

Whale has a production capacity at peak rates of about 100,000 boepd, while Perdido's stands at around 125,000 boepd, Shell said, declining to provide current output figures.

Prices for Southern Green Canyon, a crude oil grade produced in the region, strengthened 40 cents on Tuesday to a discount of $2.45 to U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude.

Exxon Mobil, the operator of the HOOPS pipeline, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The pipeline system carries oil from offshore fields south of Galveston, Texas, to near Freeport, Texas.

(Reuters - Reporting by Arathy Somasekhar in Houston; Editing by Matthew Lewis)