((Automated translation by Reuters, please see disclaimer https://bit.ly/rtrsauto))
(Added details on evacuated platforms to paragraph 3)
More than 23% of crude oil production and 10% of natural gas production in the Gulf of Mexico were disrupted by Hurricane Rafael, the U.S. Office of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said Friday .
Energy producers have evacuated dozens of offshore production platforms and halted 408,830 barrels per day of oil production and nearly 201 million cubic feet per day of natural gas in Gulf waters, the agency said. offshore regulator.
With winds of 100 mph (161 kph), Rafael was in the central Gulf of Mexico on Friday and is expected to follow a winding path there over the next few days. The National Hurricane Center predicted its winds would gradually lose strength.
The late-season storm will reduce U.S. offshore production by about 2 million barrels of oil and 1.1 billion cubic feet of natural gas, researcher Earth Science Associates estimates.
Major offshore producers including BP BP.L, Chevron
CVX.N , Equinor EQNR.OL and Shell SHEL.L , have evacuated their employees from offshore facilities and, in some cases, halted oil and gas production. Occidental Petroleum OXY.N said it was implementing safety procedures at its offshore facilities.
Closures may take several days to be reversed as companies assess the condition of their facilities and bring workers back once the storm has passed.
