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Released September 16, 2024 | SUGAR LAND
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Written by Daniel Graeber for Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Hurricane Francine was the most destructive storm so far for the U.S. Gulf Coast energy sector, though the less-severe Beryl from early this year caused far more power outages, federal data show.
As of Friday, Francine was a post-tropical cyclone that was moving north from Louisiana toward Alabama. The National Weather Service issued flood watches for parts of the area through Saturday as the remnants of Francine were expected to dump as much as 10 inches of rain on parts of northern Alabama.
Francine made landfall last week as a Category 2 storm, packing winds of around 100 miles per hour. At its peak, the storm left more than 300,000 people without power in Louisiana, though regional utility Entergy said late Thursday it had restored power to some 50% of those consumers.
It was Hurricane Beryl, which made landfall in Texas as a Category 1 storm in July, which caused more problems for the power sector. Some 2.7 million people were without power for several days while the greater Houston metropolitan area coped with severe flooding.
Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), the statistical arm of the U.S. Department of Energy, added that regional utility CenterPoint Energy was forced to fork over $1.3 billion for Beryl-related repairs.
Issues with electricity, meanwhile, hurt the sector for liquefied natural gas (LNG). The Freeport LNG facility in Texas lost power July 7 due to Beryl, shuttering its electricity-driven compression system.
Freeport returned to service by July 28, though total U.S. LNG exports were down 7% from June levels.
Francine, meanwhile, largely spared most of Texas. Ports were operating without restrictions and the LNG facilities in south Texas were working as expected. The Cameron LNG facility in Louisiana, however, saw natural gas deliveries drop by 60%, or by nearly 1 billion cubic feet per day, EIA data show. The Louisiana ports at Cameron and Lake Charles also shut down.
The United States is the world leader in LNG exports. Over the seven-day period ending September 11, 23 vessels loaded with LNG cargoes set sail from U.S. ports. Four of those left from Freeport and three managed to leave from Cameron.
Total deliveries, however, were about 10% lower than during the comparable week in 2023.
In terms of production, operators shut in about 42% of the total crude oil production and about half of the natural gas production from the U.S. territorial waters of the Gulf of Mexico due to Hurricane Francine. Beryl, meanwhile, only shut in about 10% of the total Gulf production.
Francine also caused more problems for the nation's refineries and crude oil exporters. EIA data showed refineries in southern Louisiana with a combined processing capacity of 3 million barrels per day (BBL/d) were running below peak last week. The largest of those was Exxon Mobil's (NYSE:XOM) (Spring, Texas) facility in Baton Rouge, which can run 523,000 BBL/d.
Several ports in the Gulf Coast were either closed or operating with restrictions in the immediate aftermath of Francine, limiting the potential for some 4 million BBL/d worth of exports.
By comparison, Beryl only curbed about 4% of the nation's refining capacity. The Explorer Pipeline for refined petroleum products was closed between Texas and Oklahoma for a brief time after landfall.
This year has been relatively mild despite early-season forecasts of a busy Atlantic hurricane season. The season, however, peaks between now and mid-October.
The National Hurricane Center on Friday showed two other storm systems brewing in the Atlantic. Tropical Storm Gordon has already developed deep in the Atlantic. Another system is closer to the Caribbean Islands, though it's not expected to strengthen much.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 Trillion (USD).
As of Friday, Francine was a post-tropical cyclone that was moving north from Louisiana toward Alabama. The National Weather Service issued flood watches for parts of the area through Saturday as the remnants of Francine were expected to dump as much as 10 inches of rain on parts of northern Alabama.
Francine made landfall last week as a Category 2 storm, packing winds of around 100 miles per hour. At its peak, the storm left more than 300,000 people without power in Louisiana, though regional utility Entergy said late Thursday it had restored power to some 50% of those consumers.
It was Hurricane Beryl, which made landfall in Texas as a Category 1 storm in July, which caused more problems for the power sector. Some 2.7 million people were without power for several days while the greater Houston metropolitan area coped with severe flooding.
Data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), the statistical arm of the U.S. Department of Energy, added that regional utility CenterPoint Energy was forced to fork over $1.3 billion for Beryl-related repairs.
Issues with electricity, meanwhile, hurt the sector for liquefied natural gas (LNG). The Freeport LNG facility in Texas lost power July 7 due to Beryl, shuttering its electricity-driven compression system.
Freeport returned to service by July 28, though total U.S. LNG exports were down 7% from June levels.
Francine, meanwhile, largely spared most of Texas. Ports were operating without restrictions and the LNG facilities in south Texas were working as expected. The Cameron LNG facility in Louisiana, however, saw natural gas deliveries drop by 60%, or by nearly 1 billion cubic feet per day, EIA data show. The Louisiana ports at Cameron and Lake Charles also shut down.
The United States is the world leader in LNG exports. Over the seven-day period ending September 11, 23 vessels loaded with LNG cargoes set sail from U.S. ports. Four of those left from Freeport and three managed to leave from Cameron.
Total deliveries, however, were about 10% lower than during the comparable week in 2023.
In terms of production, operators shut in about 42% of the total crude oil production and about half of the natural gas production from the U.S. territorial waters of the Gulf of Mexico due to Hurricane Francine. Beryl, meanwhile, only shut in about 10% of the total Gulf production.
Francine also caused more problems for the nation's refineries and crude oil exporters. EIA data showed refineries in southern Louisiana with a combined processing capacity of 3 million barrels per day (BBL/d) were running below peak last week. The largest of those was Exxon Mobil's (NYSE:XOM) (Spring, Texas) facility in Baton Rouge, which can run 523,000 BBL/d.
Several ports in the Gulf Coast were either closed or operating with restrictions in the immediate aftermath of Francine, limiting the potential for some 4 million BBL/d worth of exports.
By comparison, Beryl only curbed about 4% of the nation's refining capacity. The Explorer Pipeline for refined petroleum products was closed between Texas and Oklahoma for a brief time after landfall.
This year has been relatively mild despite early-season forecasts of a busy Atlantic hurricane season. The season, however, peaks between now and mid-October.
The National Hurricane Center on Friday showed two other storm systems brewing in the Atlantic. Tropical Storm Gordon has already developed deep in the Atlantic. Another system is closer to the Caribbean Islands, though it's not expected to strengthen much.
Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is the leading provider of industrial market intelligence. Since 1983, IIR has provided comprehensive research, news and analysis on the industrial process, manufacturing and energy related industries. IIR's Global Market Intelligence (GMI) helps companies identify and pursue trends across multiple markets with access to real, qualified and validated plant and project opportunities. Across the world, IIR is tracking over 200,000 current and future projects worth $17.8 Trillion (USD).
