Hurricane Ida slams critical U.S. oil port as it makes landfall
Reuters
Published Aug 29, 2021 10:12AM ET
Updated Aug 29, 2021 05:12PM ET
By Liz Hampton and Marianna Parraga
(Reuters) -Hurricane Ida made landfall on Sunday as a Category 4 storm near Port Fourchon, Louisiana, lashing critical U.S. oil infrastructure with winds up to 150 miles per hour (240 km per hour).
The Louisiana Offshore Oil Port (LOOP), the largest privately-owned crude terminal in the United States, paused deliveries ahead of the storm after forecasts indicated possible impacts to its operational areas.
LOOP's marine terminal is located in open waters about 18 nautical miles (29 km) off the shores of Louisiana, while Port Fourchon is its land base.
The Louisiana port is the only U.S. deepwater terminal capable of offloading supertankers. It handles about 10% to 15% of the country's domestic oil, 10% to 15% of the nation's imports of foreign oil, and is also connected to about half of the U.S. refining capacity, according to the Port Fourchon website. It services 90% of the Gulf of Mexico's deepwater oil production.
As of Sunday, more than 95% of U.S. Gulf of Mexico oil production was suspended, representing about 1.74 million barrels per day of output, according to the offshore regulator. The Gulf supplies about 17% of the nation's oil.
Ida intensified faster than officials predicted, prompting evacuations along the Gulf Coast and business closures. Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards on Saturday warned it could be the state's worst direct hit since the 1850s.
Other ports in southern Louisiana, including Houma and the Port of New Orleans, were closed on Sunday. In Mississippi, the ports in Biloxi, Gulfport and Pascagoula and the Gulf Intercoastal Waterway were closed.
LOOP was formed in 1972 and became a limited liability company in 1996 as a joint venture between Marathon Pipe Line, Shell (LON:RDSa) Oil Company and a unit of Valero Energy (NYSE:VLO).
Get The News You Want
Written By: Reuters
Trading in financial instruments and/or cryptocurrencies involves high risks including the risk of losing some, or all, of your investment amount, and may not be suitable for all investors. Prices of cryptocurrencies are extremely volatile and may be affected by external factors such as financial, regulatory or political events. Trading on margin increases the financial risks.
Before deciding to trade in financial instrument or cryptocurrencies you should be fully informed of the risks and costs associated with trading the financial markets, carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite, and seek professional advice where needed.
Fusion Media would like to remind you that the data contained in this website is not necessarily real-time nor accurate. The data and prices on the website are not necessarily provided by any market or exchange, but may be provided by market makers, and so prices may not be accurate and may differ from the actual price at any given market, meaning prices are indicative and not appropriate for trading purposes. Fusion Media and any provider of the data contained in this website will not accept liability for any loss or damage as a result of your trading, or your reliance on the information contained within this website.
It is prohibited to use, store, reproduce, display, modify, transmit or distribute the data contained in this website without the explicit prior written permission of Fusion Media and/or the data provider. All intellectual property rights are reserved by the providers and/or the exchange providing the data contained in this website.
Fusion Media may be compensated by the advertisers that appear on the website, based on your interaction with the advertisements or advertisers.