U.S. Energy Value Chain is Highly Resilient: Lightning Fast Bounce Back after Devastating Natural Disaster
Offshore oil and gas operators in the Gulf of Mexico are re-boarding platforms and rigs to assess their ability to resume normal operations following Tropical Storm Harvey, according to a report by the Department of Interior.
The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) Hurricane Response Team continues to monitor the operators’ activities and will work with offshore operators and other state and federal agencies.
The negative effects associated with Tropical Storm Harvey are slowly receding. In the last two days, the percentage of oil and gas wells shut in has decreased rapidly and more workers are returning to previously evacuated rigs and platforms.
In order to cushion the anxieties caused by Tropical Storm Harvey, the United States Department of Energy allowed the release of 4.5 million barrels of government-owned crude from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Also, the EPA eased anti-pollution rules to allow for more varieties of gasoline to flow between markets.
