Port of Corpus Christi Reports Increase in Oil Exports

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Written by Daniel Graeber for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Though the global economy is cooling off, the Port of Corpus Christi said it set a record for shipments so far this year, supported by an increase in crude oil deliveries from the prior year.

Expansions are underway to deepen the port, which is the third-largest U.S. port in terms of waterborne tonnage. On Tuesday, its officials said customers moved 53 million tons of product through its channel during the third quarter, a new high driven in part by increased crude oil volumes.

That marked a 2% increase over year-ago levels. Over the first nine months of the year, the port saw an average of 2.4 million barrels per day (BBL/d) of crude oil move through its channel, a 100,000-BBL/d increase over the same period last year.

The U.S. is the world leader in crude oil production, with output supported primarily by its inland shale basins. Production from just the Permian Basin is expected to average 6.3 million BBL/d this year, about 2 million BBL/d more than Iraq, the second-largest producer in the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) behind Saudi Arabia.

The U.S. lifted a ban on crude oil exports in 2015 and, apart from 2021, it has seen an increase in deliveries every year since. Last year, federal data show exports averaged 4.1 million BBL/d, a 13% increase over the prior year.

The U.S. tends to prefer running heavier types of crude oil, such as that found in Canada, through its refinery systems, leaving much of the produced light, sweet crude oil available for exports. Since 2022, that's helped support energy security in Europe, which curtailed imports of Russian crude as punishment for its invasion of Ukraine.

The Netherlands, with its port-rich landscape, was the top destination for U.S. crude oil in July, the last full month for which federal data are available, at 880,000 BBL/d. While the global economy is slowing and demand may be cooling off, energy security may be compensating for the downturn.

Kent Britton, the chief executive of the port, said that 2024 indeed started off slow, but volumes had picked up significantly by the third quarter.

"Through continued investment in our maritime infrastructure, the Port of Corpus Christi and its strong customer base remain well-positioned for future growth," he said.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers last year awarded the port its fourth and final contract for its expansion efforts. Opened in 1926 at a depth of 25 feet and a width of 200 feet, the port has been expanded several times to a depth of 56 feet and a width of 530 feet, which allows it to accommodate larger vessel classes.

In 2017, two years after the federal ban on crude oil exports was lifted, the Port of Corpus Christi welcomed its first-ever Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC). The Anne docked at an export terminal to receive an estimated 2 million barrels of oil.

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