The National Ocean Industries Association (NOIA) and the Louisiana Mid-Continent Oil & Gas Association (LMOGA) asked Federal and Louisiana government officials for allocation of COVID-19 test kits and equipment for workers in the offshore sector.

With approximately 25,000 workers offshore, there is an increased vulnerability to the spread of COVID-19 due to confined working environments inherent to the facilities and infrastructure that are part of offshore oil and gas production.

Offshore oil and gas production is a critical element of U.S. energy and national security. With U.S. offshore production recently reaching 2 million barrels of oil per day, a direct, indirect and induced workforce of more than 340,000 jobs and billions of dollars generated annually for the federal treasury, Gulf Coast state governments and the Land and Water Conservation Fund, sustaining a healthy offshore workforce should be a national priority.

NOIA President Erik Milito said, “The U.S. offshore sector is doing everything in its power to keep energy flowing while mitigating the spread of COVID-19. So far, industry efforts have led to remarkable results, with an exceedingly low COVID-19 spread rate, but we need access to testing and equipment to sustain this success. On offshore facilities, 100 to 200 workers are in constant proximity throughout the day. Only the widespread testing of workers can provide companies the information and assurance that COVID-19 is being fully prevented.”

LMOGA Vice President Lori LeBlanc said, “Louisiana is the epicenter of servicing the offshore oil and gas industry in the Gulf of Mexico and having access to COVID-19 testing is critical to the sustainability of producing American energy, to the safety of Louisiana’s energy workers and to ensure future offshore revenues that are dedicated to funding Louisiana’s  coastal restoration and protection projects.”