Crude prices rise as Ivan halts production in Gulf of Mexico
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Opec is under pressure to lift official production levels at a critical meeting today as global crude prices rose again on the back of pipeline attacks in Iraq and hurricanes heading for the Gulf of Mexico.
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Hurricane Ivan spared the critical Gulf Coast refining belt, but oil prices rose anyway Thursday on fears a new storm brewing in the Caribbean will delay tankers carrying imported crude to U.S. ports.Ivan swept east of major refineries, tank farms and other facilities in Louisiana and Texas. It also bypassed the biggest concentrations of offshore oil and gas production platforms in the Gulf of Mexico.ChevronTexaco's Pascagoula, Miss., refinery was the closest to the hurricane's path and remained closed Thursday. "The preliminary (damage) assessment is somewhat positive," said spokesman Steve Renfroe, who said the company had not determined when it could restart the plant.But on Ivan's heels Tropical Storm Jeanne knocked out a portion of production at a refinery in the U.S. Virgin Islands and barreled toward Puerto Rico.As a result, oil for October delivery rose 30 cents to &#36;43.88 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.Energy companies feared Ivan would make landfall in Louisiana or Texas and damage refineries there. The Gulf Coast accounts for nearly half of U.S. daily refining capacity of 16 million barrels. U.S. refiners are running near capacity to build stocks of winter heating fuels."The industry dodged a bullet in that the storm was really a couple of hundred miles east of refinery row (north of New Orleans) up the Mississippi River," said Jeff Dietert, refining industry analyst at Simmons &amp; Co. He said precautionary closures eliminated about 1.5 million barrels of gasoline and other products from the daily total.One of the nation's most important pipelines, the Capline carrying imported crude from New Orleans to Patoka, Ill., for Midwest refiners, was undamaged, said Shell, operator of the line.Still, Dietert predicted higher futures prices for oil and gasoline - and ultimately for consumers - after the government reports data on fuel stockpiles next week. That report will show how much oil companies and their customers have drawn from crude and gasoline inventories to make up for deliveries delayed by Ivan and Jeanne.Colm McDermott, analyst at energy research firm John S. Herold, said consumers might escape without much pain. If the impact of the refinery closures and delivery delays is short-lived, wholesalers, retailers and others in the supply chain might eat price increases rather than pass them on.Reuters reported that Ivan forced the shutdown of eight refineries, or 13% of U.S. capacity. Half of those were restarting Thursday.Offshore, Shell and other producers were flying work crews back out to some evacuated oil and gas platforms and doing aerial damage assessment of others.Shell said its refining and chemical plants in Louisiana had restarted or were never shut down. A Mobile, Ala., chemical plant remained closed, it said.
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Oil prices jumped anew Monday as Hurricane Ivan continued to ravage the Caribbean and forced the evacuation of some oil workers in the Gulf of Mexico.
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World oil prices rose on Tuesday as  Hurricane Ivan charged toward the oil-rich Gulf of Mexico,  where energy companies shut down refineries and offshore oil  rigs and evacuated thousands of workers.
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World oil prices rose on Friday, boosted by production stoppages due to a severe hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico and worries that another storm might further delay imports into the United States.
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Oil prices extended record-setting highs  above $51 for U.S. crude on Wednesday, fueled by the impact of  Hurricane Ivan on U.S. winter inventories.
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New York - Oil prices rose sharply Wednesday following the release of a US government report that said crude supplies fell by more than expected last week due to disruptions caused by Hurricane Ivan.
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Oil prices were steady on Wednesday as  Hurricane Ivan's effect on crude output and refineries in the  Gulf of Mexico balanced OPEC's attempts to reassure traders  with a four percent output ceiling hike.
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World oil prices shot higher on Monday  as companies operating in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico braced for  output disruptions from powerful Hurricane Ivan.
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WASHINGTON - Oil prices rose Thursday despite reports that refineries along the Gulf Coast, as well as production platforms in the Gulf of Mexico, that had been shut down were slowly being restaffed, as Hurricane Ivan proved to be less disruptive than feared.   "We've really not heard of any refineries in that area reporting any problems," and several are already being restarted, said Tom Bentz, a trader at BNP Paribas Futures in New York...
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Oil prices headed up toward &#36;45 a barrel on Wednesday as Hurricane Ivan shut 60 percent of crude output in the Gulf of Mexico and at least five refiners along the U.S. coast planned to close as a precaution.
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Hurricane Ivan, with winds near 140 mph, pushed oil prices higher today as it moved through the Gulf of Mexico on a path that may bring it ashore between Louisiana and Florida by Thursday.
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LONDON : Oil prices bolted higher on fears of disruption to production and import activity in the Gulf of Mexico because of Hurricane Ivan, traders said.
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World oil prices rose on Thursday on worries about oil production shut by Hurricane Ivan and a new storm that could delay imports from entering the Gulf of Mexico.
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WASHINGTON - Oil prices charged toward $50 a barrel Monday, and gasoline prices surged to $1.92 a gallon last week, as petroleum output in the Gulf of Mexico returns at a slower-than-expected rate after Hurricane Ivan and geopolitical unrest keeps traders on edge.   "The Ivan damage is persisting," said John Kilduff, senior oil analyst at Fimat USA in New York...
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Crude oil prices jumped above $51 a barrel yesterday, setting a fresh record amid a prolonged production shut-down in the Gulf of Mexico in the wake of Hurricane Ivan.
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Oil prices jumped more than a dollar,  climbing above $48 a barrel on Wednesday after U.S. data showed  the disruption caused by Hurricane Ivan had eaten into fuel  stocks.