courtesy NOAA

Hurricane Ike has become the latest Atlantic-born storm to threaten Gulf of Mexico oil production after it lashed embargo-riddled Cuba on its way to the U.S. oil regions.

A quarter of U.S oil production and a 15 percent of American gas production is threatened, as forecasts from the National Hurricane Centre put Ike’s landfall at anywhere between East Texas to just west of New Orleans. Oil companies kept some production shut-in after Hurricane Gustav two weeks ago.

In all, 200 production platforms of the Gulf’s 717 have been evacuated, as have 15 of 121 rigs, according to the Minerals Management Service.

Oil companies have said 80 percent of oil production normally 1.3 million barrels per day is still shut-in: 64 percent of the Region’s 7.4 billion cubic feet per day of gas is still closed down.

Ike’s centre is forecast to line up with the centre of the Gulf of Mexico by Thursday night local time.