Last Updated on December 24, 2019 4:28 pm
As residents along the southeastern portion of Texas brace for what could be an historic hurricane, motorists in the High Country, and nationwide, may see a rise in gas prices in the coming days.
According to a Thursday report from the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, “it is estimated that approximately 9.56 percent of the current oil production in the Gulf of Mexico has been shut-in, which equates to 167,231 barrels of oil per day. It is also estimated that approximately 14.66 percent percent of the natural gas production, or 472 million cubic feet per day in the Gulf of Mexico has been shut-in. The production percentages are calculated using information submitted by offshore operators in daily reports. Shut-in production information included in these reports is based on the amount of oil and gas the operator expected to produce that day.”
A little over 16% of the US total oil refining, condensate splitter and processing capacity is in the Corpus Christi/Houston/Texas City/Baytown regions, according to Oil Price Information.
The Gulf of Mexico region accounts for 17% of total U.S. crude oil production and federal offshore natural gas production in the Gulf accounts for 5% of total U.S. dry production, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). Stats from EIA also show that over 45% of total U.S. petroleum refining capacity is located along the Gulf coast, as well as 51% of total U.S. natural gas processing plant capacity.
Hurricane Harvey, a Category 1 storm as of late Thursday afternoon, is forecast to intensify to possibly a Category 3 before making landfall Friday night or early Saturday, and could stall in the Gulf Coast area for several days.
In a Thursday tweet from Tom Kloza, founder of Oil Price Information Service
Gasoline season may end with a bang, and not a whimper. Worries about Hurricane Harvey add 4-8cts gal to spot prices today. More tomorrow.
— Tom Kloza (@TomKloza) August 24, 2017
