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The
NewsRoom
Release: #3349
Date: September 16, 2005
MMS Working to Restore Gulf of Mexico Energy
Resources
Washington, DC -The Gulf of Mexico is of vital
importance to American citizens, supplying 29% of the nation’s
domestic oil production and 19% of the domestic gas production. For
this reason, within hours after Katrina moved through, the complex
process of energy restoration began in the Gulf.
Hurricane Katrina was
an extraordinary storm. The conditions under which the industry, the
workers, and the government entities are working are unmatched in our
history.
“In a tragedy of these proportions, human life takes
precedence,” said MMS Director Johnnie Burton. “Helicopters, boats and
efforts were diverted to provide humanitarian aid to those persons
devastated by Hurricane Katrina.”
“Nevertheless, the MMS Continuity of Operations, or
COOP team, moved to Houston and devoted every waking hour to helping
restore energy for America.”
The major hindrances to restoration of energy
resources have been
damage (40 KB
PDF file) to onshore infrastructure, such as
refineries, processing plants and pipelines; difficult and
intermittent communications in the Gulf region; shortage of
helicopters, boats, divers and power. The MMS posted their new
location and telephone numbers on the MMS website so industry could
provide their damage assessments and restoration plans. As this
information is collected from a variety of sources and verified, MMS
has posted daily oil and gas shut-in statistics on the website.
At the peak of Hurricane Katrina on August 30th, 95
percent of daily oil production and 88 percent of daily gas production
was shut in
(14 KB PDF file). Today those numbers stand at 56.14 percent of oil
production (35% of shut-in oil is due to problems with onshore
infrastructure), and 34.11 percent of natural gas production.
Solid data on pipeline damage is being continually
supplied by the industry and verified, but pipelines are the hardest
element to check and
these checks
(139 KB PDF file) rely on some of the scarcest
resources, such as boats, divers and power. Preliminary reports
suggest that Katrina did not cause the same extensive mudslide damage
to pipelines as Ivan, but this is still preliminary and subject to
information which is changing continually.
Current information will continue to be posted on
the Minerals Management Service website as it is collected and
verified.
MMS, part of the U.S. Department of the Interior,
oversees 1.76 billion acres of the Outer Continental Shelf, managing
offshore energy and minerals while protecting the human, marine, and
coastal environments. The OCS provides 30 percent of oil and 21
percent of natural gas produced domestically, as well as sand used for
coastal restoration. MMS collects, accounts for, and disburses mineral
revenues from Federal and American Indian lands, and contributes to
the Land and Water Conservation Fund and other special use funds, with
Fiscal Year 2004 disbursements of about $8 billion and more than $143
billion since 1982.
Contact: Gary Strasburg
(202) 208-3985
Securing Ocean Energy & Economic Value for
America
U.S. Department of the Interior
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