Santos, Chevron, BHP Shut Oil Fields as Cyclone Nears

Santos Ltd., Chevron Corp. and BHP Billiton shut down oil fields off Australia’s northwestern coast because of Tropical Cyclone Clare, which is approaching the area.

Output at Santos’s A$440 million ($331 million) Mutineer- Exeter project was halted yesterday and the vessel used to produce oil has been disconnected from the flow lines, Kathryn Mitchell, a spokeswoman at the Adelaide-based company, said today. BHP Billiton shut down the Griffin oil field yesterday, while Chevron’s Barrow Island production will be shut by this evening.