Shell has restarted production from its Mars and Ursa platforms in the US Gulf of Mexico (GOM) following repairs necessitated by Hurricane Ida, which ripped through the heart of US offshore production in late August. The storm damaged critical hub facilities in Shell’s West Delta 143 (WD-143) complex that forced several deepwater developments off line. With repairs complete, oil and gas are flowing again through the WD-143 “A” structure.
The WD-143 facilities serve as the transfer station for all production from Shell's assets in the Mars corridor in the Mississippi Canyon area of the GOM to onshore crude terminals.
“Our Hurricane Ida recovery efforts are the latest example of how our people come together with great determination to tackle the biggest challenges of the day,” said Zoe Yujnovich, upstream director at Shell. “We are proud to have safely restored our full production in the US Gulf of Mexico, where the barrels are among the lowest GHG [greenhouse-gas] intensity in the world.”
Hurricane Ida made landfall near Port Fourchon, Louisiana, as a Category 4 storm with winds in excess of 150 miles per hour, devastating the town of Grand Isle and sidelining a crucial oil port. Ida is considered the fourth-costliest Atlantic hurricane in the US having caused more than $65 billion in estimated damages.
On 1 October, Shell restarted production at its Olympus platform and began exporting oil and gas through the WD-143 “C” facility. When Mars and Ursa are fully ramped up, the company will have 100% of its operated production back on line, ahead of schedule from initial estimates.
The WD-143 platform, owned by Shell Offshore (71.5%) and BP Exploration & Production (28.5%), is operated by Shell Pipeline Company LP.
