Rita Took Toll on Gulf Oil Rigs and Platforms; Production Drops for Petroleumand Natural Gas

By STEVE QUINN Associated Press writer

DALLAS — Hurricane Rita may have caused more damage to rigs and platforms than any Gulf of Mexico storm, oil and gas analysts said Wednesday.

Rita and Katrina cost the gulf almost 7 percent of its annual oil production and 5 percent of its yearly natural gas output, according to a report from the U.S. Minerals Management Service.

ODS-Petrodata, which provides data and information to the industry, reported 13 rigs already seriously damaged or destroyed by Rita. Platform damage still is being assessed, said Tom Marsh, an ODS analyst

Meanwhile, 9 of 12 pipelines that move gas and oil onshore remain shut down or operate at less than 100 percent capacity, according to the latest report by the Association of Oil Pipelines.

Refineries in the hardest-hit area of Beaumont and Port Arthur, Texas, plus Lake Charles, La., still are not operating, costing about 1.7 million barrels a day of refined products, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.

The slow pace of recovery for the gulf refineries, rigs and platforms, and concerns about demand for heating oil this winter and gasoline, drove up oil futures Wednesday.

Light, sweet crude for November delivery rose $1.28 to $66.35 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Natural gas futures for October rose more than $1 to $13.907 per million British thermal units.

Heating oil gained more than 7 cents to settle at $2.1411 a gallon, while gasoline gained more than 17 cents to settle at $2.3393 a gallon — an increase of about 8 percent.

Industry executives and analysts say consumers and companies should brace for an expensive winter. And natural gas prices could soar more than fuel oil because, unlike crude oil, there are no natural gas reserves to tap.