Posted on 09/12/2008 5:40:10 AM PDT by thackney
Hurricane Ike's pending assault of the Texas Gulf Coast spurred a slew of major oil refineries to shut down Thursday, stoking concerns that the lost output will further strain U.S. fuel supplies and send pump prices higher.
The closures included Exxon Mobil Corp.'s Baytown refinery and BP's Texas City plant, two of the nation's largest fuel-making facilities.
Ike has raised fears of a repeat of Hurricane Gustav, which last week plowed through a key refining corridor in south Louisiana. Some critical energy infrastructure remains out of commission because of damage from that storm.
One analyst estimated Thursday that Ike's current track could lead to short- or long-term disruptions at plants representing roughly 40 percent of U.S. refining capacity.
Such predictions, coupled with already weakened fuel stockpiles after Gustav-related refinery outages, have helped push wholesale gasoline prices sky high in recent days.
On Thursday, fuel station operators woke up to find the spot price for gasoline had risen nearly $1.50 a gallon overnight.
"We didn't see that big a rise in Katrina," said Douglas Haugh, executive vice president of Gainesville, Ga.-based Mansfield Oil Co., one of the nation's largest fuel distributors.
Yet during a major storm, gas stations will be unable to raise pump prices enough to cover increased fuel costs, fearing allegations of price gouging, he said.
Among the list of oil refineries that either suspended production or were in the process of shutting down Thursday include Valero Energy Corp.'s Texas City, Port Arthur and Houston plants, LyondellBasell's Houston plant, Shell's Deer Park complex, ConocoPhillips' Sweeny facility and Marathon Oil Corp.'s Texas City refinery.
Other plants in the region were running at reduced rates, while chemical plants operated...
Fuel supplies were already weakened after Hurricane Gustav knocked out about 15 percent of the nation's refining capacity for several days.
(Excerpt) Read more at chron.com ...
Just watched the attendant change the gas to $3.64 from $3.56, while I waited for a pump to open. (I’m in Rural Georgia, near an interstate).
Oil is bought 3 months ahead, a 72 hour storm should not present a problem. The heads are shut, platforms empty and assuming no major damage, will be back in full operation monday. Just like a long weekend.
Something is causing stations to limit purchases to 10 gallons in Chattanooga, TN. I saw numerous stations yesterday near Chattanooga and again 30 miles north in a rural area with long lines of cars waiting to get gas. At first I thought it was just because it was rush hour (such as it is in Chattanooga), but my wife got off work at 8:00PM last night and she said the lines were still there when she was on her way home. If not a supply shortage, then what?
thackney, six-to-eight weeks ago displayed EIA chart after EIA chart after EIA etc, etc, etc, beautifully displaying crude and gasoline was going to continue to stream towards $200/bbl--no if, and buts to that.
shadowgovernment, Truth is often very, very simple--Henry Paulson, Goldman Sach [who are still sticking to $200/bbl forecasts] and BP [British Petroleum].
“Oil is bought 3 months ahead, a 72 hour storm should not present a problem.”
....oh, of course it should not. You are just being way to realistic.
I have never posted a an EIA chart or any other chart predicting $200/bbl oil.
My posts are all in the archive, I cannot delete them. Perhaps you could support your claim by pointing a couple out.
I'm sorry but you have no idea what you are talking about. There was over 700 rigs and platforms evacuated just for little Gustav. You cannot move that many people on and off those isolated platforms in 72 hours. And it is a lot more complicated than just flipping a switch on and off.
Take a look at the last couple weeks for Gulf of Mexico status:
86,013 BOPD Shut-in, 23 platforms/rigs evacuated - 8/29
998,021 BOPD Shut-in, 268 platforms/rigs evacuated - 8/30
1,251,409 BOPD Shut-in, 604 platforms/rigs evacuated - 8/31
1,300,000 BOPD Shut-in, 726 platforms/rigs evacuated - 9/1
1,300,000 BOPD Shut-in, 742 platforms/rigs evacuated - 9/2
1,245,708 BOPD Shut-in, 690 platforms/rigs evacuated - 9/3
1,238,167 BOPD Shut-in, 590 platforms/rigs evacuated - 9/4
1,176,738 BOPD Shut-in, 368 platforms/rigs evacuated - 9/5
1,136,843 BOPD Shut-in, 241 platforms/rigs evacuated - 9/6
1,037,466 BOPD Shut-in, 212 platforms/rigs evacuated - 9/7
1,032,612 BOPD Shut-in, 215 platforms/rigs evacuated - 9/8
1,007,389 BOPD Shut-in, 211 platforms/rigs evacuated - 9/9
1,246,595 BOPD Shut-in, 533 platforms/rigs evacuated - 9/10
1,260,243 BOPD Shut-in, 655 platforms/rigs evacuated - 9/11
Source:
http://www.mms.gov/ooc/newweb/pressreleases/newsstories.htm
I acknowledged platforms got evacuated, check when the crews went back. They are not permanently shutdown. Most were back in operations in 72 to 100 hours.
The winds hopefully will be only 100 mph, but there have been predictions that Ike will make landfall as Category 3 storm.
Currently, at this late moment, Ike does not have a well formed eye... So this might be good news for people and the refineries in the area.
Hurricane Gustav is the partial answer, along with the fact we operate refinery capacity at 90% to 95% of total capacity (less than a dime in change if there are maintenance work or other shutdowns).
There is predicted storm surge of about 30 feet for Baytown and Texas City refineries... I think that is part of the explanation as well...
Gustav made supplies tight -- Refineries in New Orleans, Baton Rouge, and Lake Charles were shutdown, as well as in Mississippi and some of the Texas refineries...
That was also during the Labor Day Weekend.
Try again. Most that were shut down are STILL shut down. Look at the shut in production numbers.
I checked today’s report, 1,267,187 BOPD still shut in.
The peak was 1,300,000. The average FOR TWO WEEKS as of today is more than 90% of the peak was shut in.
Gas here in metro Atlanta is in short supply, with the local Costco and many other stations out. Stations that still have gas appear to have spiked their prices about $0.50.
This afternoon's report has been released, more than 3 days after the storm has passed.
Approximately 97.2% (1,263,730 BPD) of the oil production in the Gulf is still shut-in. Approximately 84.2% (6,231 MMCF/D) of the natural gas production in the Gulf is shut-in.
Hurricane Gustav/Hurricane Ike Activity Statistics Update - September 16, 2008
http://www.mms.gov/ooc/press/2008/press0916.htm
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.