Hurricane Isaias forced Gulf of Mexico energy producers to halt about 1.5 million barrels per day of oil output and 1.3 billion cubic feet per day of natural gas production as the Category 3 storm approached the Florida Panhandle on Friday.
The shutdowns represented nearly 72% of the Gulf's oil production and 59% of its natural gas output, Reuters reported, citing U.S. government data.
Offshore crews leave platforms
Operators evacuated workers from 129 of the Gulf's 371 staffed production platforms and eight non-dynamically positioned rigs. The offshore region normally produces about 2 million barrels of oil per day, or roughly 15% of U.S. crude output.
Several major producers curtailed operations as Isaias strengthened. Shell completed evacuations at five facilities and kept production shut in at Mars, Ursa, Olympus and Vito. Chevron evacuated most personnel, maintained production at four operated platforms and shut in output at its remaining five.
The storm was expected to make landfall along the western Florida Panhandle late Friday. It was the first hurricane of the 2026 Atlantic season, according to Reuters.
Disruption may reach refineries
Earth Science Associates estimated that Isaias could disrupt about 7.2 million barrels of Gulf oil production, down from a 9 million-barrel estimate a day earlier as forecasts shifted the storm's projected path eastward.
The storm's projected path also put about 500,000 barrels per day of refining capacity at risk, including the Pascagoula, Mississippi, refinery, according to an Energy Aspects estimate cited by Reuters.
