UPDATE 3-US offshore oilpatch restarts after storm passes

* 43 pct of Gulf of Mexico oil production shut -MMS

* 28 pct of natural gas output shut -MMS

* Oil cos return workers, restore operations in Gulf

(Recasts, updates with shut production figures)

By Erwin Seba

HOUSTON, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Tropical Storm Ida shut slightly more than 43 percent of Gulf of Mexico oil production before coming ashore on Tuesday in Alabama, the U.S. Minerals Management Service said. [ID:nN10528777]

More than a quarter of U.S. offshore natural gas production was shut as Ida crossed the Gulf between Saturday and Tuesday, weakening to a tropical depression shortly after coming ashore near Mobile Bay, Alabama.

Oil and natural gas companies were quickly dispatching workers on helicopters to offshore platforms to check for damage and begin the restart process.

(For more details on restored production see Factbox [ID:nN10308574])

Crude oil prices rose on Monday amid worries of the storm's impact on the offshore oilpatch, but the quick recovery sent crude down more than 20 cents on Tuesday in New York Mercantile Exchange trading.

Giant energy facilities like the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port (LOOP) and the Independence Hub [ID:nN10309999] announced on Tuesday morning that they were working to restore operations late Tuesday or early Wednesday.

The Gulf's largest producers BP (BP.L), Exxon (XOM.N) and Shell (RDSa.L) said they had seen little damage to offshore platforms.

The LOOP, which takes in an average of 1 million barrels of foreign crude from cargo ships daily, stopped offloading tankers early Sunday afternoon in preparation for Ida. It is the only U.S. port that can receive the largest crude oil tankers. [ID:nN09484512]

The Independence Hub processes 1 billion cubic feet natural gas daily in the Gulf. Owner Enterprise Products Partners said full production could be back as early as Wednesday.

Ships resumed moving on the Mississippi River on Tuesday, a day after the waterway was shut from New Orleans to the Gulf of Mexico.

Ida caused power outages for a total of 10,000 customers in coastal areas of Alabama and western Florida. Many of the outages have been restored. (Additional reporting by Bruce Nichols and Kristen Hays in Houston, Janet McGurty in Toronto; and Edward McAllister, Eileen Moustakis, Scott Disavino and Joshua Schneyer in New York; Editing by David Gregorio)