About 17% of U.S. Gulf of Mexico oil production shut due to Hurricane Rafael

About 17% of crude oil production and 7% of natural gas output in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico was shut in response to Hurricane Rafael, the U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said on Wednesday.

Energy producers had shut in 304,418 barrels per day of oil production and nearly 131 million cubic feet of natural gas from Gulf waters, the bureau said.

Rafael, a Category 3 hurricane, was located about 70 miles (110 km) south of Havana in Cuba, with maximum sustained winds of 115 mph (185 kph), per the latest advisory from the U.S. National Hurricane Center.

Oil and gas producers began shutting U.S. Gulf of Mexico output and pulling workers off platforms this week ahead of a late-season storm threatening offshore fields.

Eleven production platforms, about 3% of the Gulf of Mexico total, and one drilling rig were evacuated, the offshore regulator said, citing reports from producers.

The U.S. Gulf of Mexico accounts for about 15% of all domestic oil production and 2% of natural gas output, according to federal data. — Reuters