Hurricane Disrupts Refining Capacity in US

Ports, refineries and petrochemical facilities along the Gulf Coast were shut down as Hurricane Laura barreled toward America’s fuel-making corridor. The hurricane weakened to a Category 3 storm as it made landfall overnight near Lake Charles, La., the WSJ’s Valerie Bauerlein reports, with the National Hurricane Center projecting a storm surge as high as 20 feet. More than 20% of U.S. refining capacity is within the storm’s potential path, according to IHS Markit, and companies closed or planned to shut nearly three million barrels a day worth of capacity. Companies had already shut down some 84% of oil production in the Gulf, the WSJ’s Rebecca Elliott and Collin Eaton write, and put much of the nation’s exports of shale gas on hold. Several chemical makers shut facilities and reduced staff as they braced for the storm, and the Port of Houston said it would remain closed at least through Thursday.