US natural gas futures surged above $2.90 per MMBtu on Tuesday, driven by continued disruptions in production from the Gulf of Mexico following Storm Rafael.
US natural gas futures extend rising trend
The US Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) reported that, as of Sunday, 482,790 barrels of oil and 310 million cubic feet of natural gas remained shut in, accounting for more than 25% of oil output and 16% of natural gas production. Additionally, 37 out of 371 manned platforms—roughly 10%—were still evacuated, and two drilling vessels were displaced.
Production losses figures
Total production losses to date have reached 2.07 million barrels of oil and 1.12 billion cubic feet of natural gas. While Rafael was downgraded to a tropical storm after making landfall as a major hurricane, the storm is expected to linger in the central Gulf before shifting south and southwest early this week, according to the US National Hurricane Center.
