Offshore staff
LONDON – Consultants GlobalData reports oil and gas exploration and production in parts of West Africa are under increasing risk due to the failure to contain the Ebola virus.
John Sisa, lead analyst covering Upstream Oil & Gas in the Sub-Saharan region, said many of the E&P operations depend heavily on expatriates working and living in the region. Some operators may withdraw personnel and halt activities, he suggested, until the Ebola situation is controlled in the countries presently most affected.
“Although most of thedrilling in Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Liberia occurs offshore in water depths ranging from 300-4,500 m (984-14,764 ft), almost all oil workers are based in onshore stations, exposing them to Ebola. Oil workers who are local nationals and return to their onshore homes in dangerous, infected zones could bring the virus to the drillships and platforms when reporting for duty.”
Sisa saidNigeria was the only country in the region with sufficient resources to contain the outbreak, but even there a risk remains of an uncontrolled spread of the virus. As the world’s eighth largest crude oil producer, there is a substantial threat of supply disruption should the virus spread further in the country, he pointed out.
“Almost 80% of Nigeria’s total oil production comes from offshore areas, while the remaining portion comes from onshore areas considered high-risk Ebola zones. If the outbreak spreads further, it could potentially disrupt all Nigerian onshore oil production, equivalent to $40 million per day.”
In the worst case, Sisa said, Ebola may spread toEast Africa, endangering operations in Kenya, Mozambique, Tanzania, and Uganda.
09/10/2014
