BNR – A fatal fire broke out on a huge marine rig in the Gulf of Mexico’s southern point. According to Pemex, it has resulted in a shortage of 700,000 barrels of crude oil output thus far.
Octavio Romero, the CEO of the state firm, revealed on Saturday that one employee is still missing.
The fire broke out early Friday on the company’s Cantarell Field’s Nohoch-A link rig. Later, the fire spread to a compression complex, killing two individuals. The fire has subsequently been extinguished, according to the firm.
“Today, 700,000 barrels of losses have been reflected (…) because we closed practically all the wells in the area,” said Romero via the company’s Twitter account.
The CEO noted that 600,000 barrels of output were back on track as of Saturday afternoon.
Search Continues Following Fire
According to the firm, rescuers were still seeking the individual who went missing in Cantarell following the fire. Cantarell is a notable asset that generates around 170,000 barrels of oil a day (bpd). It’s around 85 kilometres from Ciudad del Carmen on the Bay of Campeche. Furthermore, it is comprised of a succession of fields in the water and was once the most prolific worldwide.
In the past few years, Pemex has seen a series of industrial problems in this extremely prolific area. The shallow waters of the Mexican Gulf supply the majority of Mexico’s petroleum output (around 1.6 million bpd).