The U.S. Energy Information Administration posted data recently tallying the damage that Hurricane Rita did to the nations base oil industry: Paraffinic output in October was 3.3 million barrels, 24 percent lower than the average for that month over the previous five years.
The drop-off was the result of four plants in Texas and Louisiana being temporarily closed after Rita struck the Gulf of Mexico Coast Sept. 24. In fact, the plants all closed ahead of the storms landfall, contributing to a 15 percent decline in paraffinic output for September. Three of the four plants resumed production during the second half of October.
The E.I.A. breaks down petroleum product output data into five districts, four of which have base oil plants. The October reduction was confined to the Gulf region, which produced 1.8 million barrels compared to an average of 3 million barrels during that month from 2000 to 2004. Plants across the rest of the country helped lessen the blow by producing a combined 183,000 barrels more than normal.
Posted prices for paraffinics in the United States were unchanged the past week. The price of crude oil on the New York Mercantile Exchange closed yesterday at $63.35 per barrel, according to Bloomberg. That was 42 cents higher than the previous week.
Historic U.S. posted base oil prices and WTI and Brent crude spot prices are available for purchase in Excel format.