Hess Issues Operational Update Post Enchilada Incident

Hess Corporation (NYSE:HES) has issued an update following the breakout of a fire, which affected operations at the Royal Dutch Shell (LON:RDSa) plc’s RDS.A Enchilada platform in the Gulf of Mexico.

Hess has temporarily abandoned production at its Baldpate, Conger and Penn State fields. Production has been shut in the Llano Field, operated by Royal Dutch Shell, wherein, Hess holds an interest of 50%. Hess’ share of production from these fields amounts to approximately 30 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day.

Royal Dutch Shell stated that a plan is being developed for restoring the damaged assets. Production coming through the Garden Banks Gas Pipeline system will be closed until further notice.

Hess is co-operating with Royal Dutch Shell to set up the exact restart time of the Enchilada platform.

About Hess

Hess is a global Exploration & Production (E&P) company. The company engages in exploration, development, production, transportation, purchase and sale of crude oil, natural gas liquids, and natural gas. Currently, the company has two operating segments — E&P and Bakken Midstream.

The company’s E&P activities are concentrated in Denmark, Equatorial Guinea, the Joint Development Area of Malaysia/Thailand (JDA), Malaysia, Norway and the United States.

Price Movement

The company’s shares have declined 15% as against the industry’s rally of 14.8% in the last three months.

Zacks Rank & Key Picks

Hess currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). A few better-ranked players in the energy sector are ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) and Northern Oil and Gas Inc (NYSE:NOG) . Both of these stocks sport a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

ConocoPhillips, based in Houston, TX, is a major global exploration and production (E&P) company. It delivered an average positive earnings surprise of 152.34% in the last four quarters.

Northern Oil and Gas, based in Minnetonka, MN, is an independent energy company. The company delivered an earnings surprise of 100.00% in the preceding quarter.

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