Lake Charles refineries in the path of Tropical Storm Harvey have largely been able to maintain operations despite the flooding caused by the storm, FuelFix.com reports.
Phillips 66 and Citgo Petroleum refineries in Lake Charles are still running.
However, Phillips 66 has signed an exchange agreement with the U.S. Energy Department to tap into the nation’s emergency oil reserves.
FuelFix reports that Energy Secretary Rick Perry is taking 500,000 barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve’s West Hackberry site, south of Lake Charles, to offset any shortage of crude caused by Harvey and to prevent a spike in gas prices.
“The SPR release will help ensure that we can maximize our refined product supply in order to provide reliable energy during a difficult time that includes supply and logistics challenges following Hurricane Harvey,” Phillips 66 says.
In other news, Bloomberg reports that heavy rains from Tropical Storm Harvey halted construction of Sasol’s Lake Charles Chemical Project.
The site will be closed until weather conditions permit work to resume safely, the Johannesburg-based company says.
