Chevron restarts Gulf of Mexico platforms after outage, Shell waits

Quantum Commodity Intelligence - US energy giant Chevron is restarting its oil platform located in the Gulf of Mexico after the Amberjack pipeline came back online, while Shell's three platforms are still shut as the Mars pipeline remains closed, the companies told Quantum.

The two pipelines – both operated by Shell and able to pump a combined 500,000 bpd – were shut in on Thursday even after a leak was discovered at a pressure station at Port Fourchon.

The leak was due to a flange that failed, spilling a mere two barrels of crude, with the pressure station expected to be fully operational by the end of Friday, port authorities said.

As of 1800 London time, that allowed for the Amberjack pipe to partially restart, which hooks up to Chevron's three platforms, while the Mars pipeline remains offline.

"The Amberjack pipeline is currently back online and flowing at reduced capacity to connecting carriers," Shell said.

Chevron confirmed that it was in the process of ramping up production at the Jack/St. Malo, Tahiti, and Big Foot platforms.

"The Mars oil pipeline remains shut-in at this time as crews work to repair a flange on the mainline at Fourchon booster station," the company added said, adding that it expects the pipeline to become fully operational later on Friday.

However, the Mars, Ursa, and Olympus platforms remained shut in at the time of press.