Shell announced the start of production at a new floating facility in the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday, just days after President Joe Biden unveiled a new ban on offshore drilling within most federal waters.
Biden’s ban, which President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to undo, does not include the western Gulf of Mexico where Shell’s new Whale facility is located.
Shell expects the site to produce the equivalent of 100,000 barrels of oil a day at peak output. In total, officials estimate the Whale development has access to about 480 million barrels of oil equivalent of oil and gas reserves.
“It will make a significant contribution to our commitment to bring projects online, with a total peak production of more than 500,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day from 2023 through 2025,” said Zoë Yujnovich, Shell’s integrated gas and upstream director, in a statement.
