Operations for refiners and shippers along the Gulf Coast, steadily dealing with the strain on logistics and damages caused by Hurricane Harvey.
Per Department of Energy, five Gulf Coast refineries have already quickly begun the process of bringing services back online after mandatory shutdowns. The five refineries make for a combined capacity of 1.55 billion b/d which equates to a 16% of the total Gulf Coast (PADD 3) oil capacity, which also accounts for 8.4% of the total refining capacity in the US.
It has also been reported that seven refineries in the US Gulf Coast were operating in a limited capacity as of September 5th, which account for a combined capacity of 1.67 million b/d, or 17.2% of total Gulf Coast production. This accounts for a total of 9% of the US refining capacity.
Damages from Harvey include a sunken dry dock in the Houston Ship Channel, which allowed the shipment of 646,000 b/d of crude oil imports.
Although, the DOE reported, as of September 4th, that the Houston Shipping Channel was open to just past ExxonMobil’s Baytown refinery to only vessels carrying a 40-ft draft, with reports last showing that ships were able to pass through the channel successfully.
In Texas, the ports of Galveston Port Arthur, Texas City and Beaumont were fully open without restrictions as of September 4th.
This all points the the onshore and offshore oil producers to quickly bring activity up to pre storm levels. Overall, minimal damage has been reported by refinery operators, with work crews returning back to the field as of last week.