Washington (Platts)--13Jul2005

Damage caused by Hurricane Dennis to oil and gas operations in the Gulf of
Mexico was "extremely light," the US Minerals Management Service said
Wednesday. "This was much lighter than Hurricane Ivan was last year," MMS Gulf
of Mexico Regional Director Chris Oynes said in a statement. 

"The eye of the hurricane was about 120 miles farther east than Ivan's was in
the deeper water sections of the Gulf and thus the impact to the platforms and
rigs was minimal," MMS said. "The path of the hurricane carried it mostly over
open water with no oil and gas operations." MMS said the little damaged
reported included a small number of missing handrails and steel grating from
the lower levels of the platforms. 

"There was no reported damage to the transportation pipelines and a very small
number of damage reports to infield flowlines," MMS said. The agency also
noted that "no link has been established between the hurricane and the damage
to" BP's large Thunder Horse facility, which is listing at about 20-30
degrees. An investigation is under way, MMS said.

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