U.S. officials said on Nov. 21 seven energy companies have been impacted by an oil discharge near Main Pass Oil Gathering Co.'s (MPOG) pipeline system in the Gulf of Mexico that is estimated to have released more than a million gallons of crude oil.
The 67-mile long pipeline was closed by MPOG on the morning of Nov. 16 after crude oil was spotted around 19 miles offshore of the Mississippi River delta, near Plaquemines Parish, southeast of New Orleans.
"Seven producers affected and those producers are currently shut in," Bryan Domangue of the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said during a press briefing.
Officials said investigations and surveys were ongoing to determine the source of the discharge, but added that there were no reported injuries or shoreline impacts so far.
There has been no impact on vessels and the waterway remains open to all commercial and recreational vessel traffic, officials said.
While the exact volume of discharged oil was not known, the Coast Guard, which was leading the clean up, said initial calculations placed the volume of the leak at 1.1 million gallons or 26,190 bbl.
"We're not saying that was the exact amount. We are not going to know the exact amount of oil that was discharged into the Gulf of Mexico until we find the source," said Captain Kelly Denning, deputy commander, sector New Orleans.
The officials also said it was yet to be established if Third Coast Infrastructure, which owns MPOG, is responsible for the spill.
"They're suspected responsible party but we won't know until we find the source which is why we keep referring to them as the responding party," said Denning.
Recommended Reading
BP Pursues ‘25-by-‘25’ Target to Amp Up LNG Production
2024-02-15 - BP wants to boost its LNG portfolio to 25 mtpa by 2025 under a plan dubbed “25-by-25,” upping its portfolio by 9% compared to 2023, CEO Murray Auchincloss said during the company’s webcast with analysts.
President: Financial Debt for Mexico's Pemex Totaled $106.8B End of 2023
2024-02-21 - President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador revealed the debt data in a chart from a presentation on Pemex at a government press conference.
Green Swan Seeks US Financing for Global Decarbonization Projects
2024-02-21 - Green Swan, an investment platform seeking to provide capital to countries signed on to the Paris Agreement, is courting U.S. investors to fund decarbonization projects in countries including Iran and Venezuela, its executives told Hart Energy.
Sunoco’s $7B Acquisition of NuStar Evades Further FTC Scrutiny
2024-04-09 - The waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act for Sunoco’s pending acquisition of NuStar Energy has expired, bringing the deal one step closer to completion.
Kissler: OPEC+ Likely to Buoy Crude Prices—At Least Somewhat
2024-03-18 - By keeping its voluntary production cuts, OPEC+ is sending a clear signal that oil prices need to be sustainable for both producers and consumers.