Shell and BP begin Gulf evacuations as Isaac marches on

BP announced this afternoon it has shut down production and begun evacuations at a large platform in the Gulf of Mexico, The Houston Chronicle reports, while other oil companies say they are monitoring the progress of Tropical Storm Isaac, which appears headed for the northern Gulf in the coming days. Shell reports it has ceased drilling operations in some areas of the Gulf but that it has not shut down any production so far. The company said it has begun evacuating nonessential personnel from some facilities. BP says it has begun clearing all workers from a platform located about 150 miles southeast of New Orleans, at a water depth of about 6,050 feet. The Thunder Horse platform is capable of producing and exporting 250,000 barrels a day of oil from several wells in the area. BP has also started evacuating nonessential personnel from several other offshore facilities. Shell says the evacuation of its personnel thus far would not affect its production operations. A key question remains: How strong will Isaac get once it moves into the Gulf? The answer is highly dependent upon how far off Florida’s west coast Isaac is as it moves northwest through the Gulf of Mexico. If it’s within 50 or 75 miles, it should remain a fairly weak system. If it’s 100 miles or more off the coast, it will have ample opportunity to strengthen. Read the full story here.