Shell halts some Gulf of Mexico output because of Exxon pipeline leak

Shell temporarily halted production on April 9

epa08347159 A view of an oil pump jack in the oil field near Midland, Texas, USA, 06 April 2020. Midland, Texas is a city in western Texas, part of the Permian Basin area. Gas prices across the country are extremely low due to a dramatic drop in the value of oil.  EPA/LARRY W. SMITH
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Royal Dutch Shell on Monday said a leak in an Exxon Mobil offshore pipeline shut down production at its Perdido platform, which produces 100,000 barrels of crude a day, in the US Gulf of Mexico.

Shell temporarily halted production on April 9 after a subsurface leak was discovered on Exxon’s Hoover Offshore Oil Pipeline System.

Exxon shut the pipeline for repairs, a spokeswoman for Shell said.

The system also connects the Exxon-operated Hoover, Marshall and Madison offshore fields, which produce a total of about 4,000 barrels of oil per day, a 2018 marketing brochure said.

Exxon Mobil did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Perdido platform is 322 kilometres south of Galveston, Texas, and is a joint venture between Shell, BP and Chevron.

The 245-kilometre Hoover pipeline carries oil from offshore oilfields to the Quintana Terminal near Freeport, Texas, an Exxon website says.