Examining the Strategic Role of Affected Deep-water Ports
As of today (August 30), it’s too soon to gauge Hurricane Harvey’s impact, let alone target dates for recovery. Even as the rains eased in Corpus Christi (near the hurricane’s landfall) and Houston, Harvey has pivoted toward the Texas-Louisiana border.
One clear result: Harvey and its historic rains have closed deep-water Texas Gulf ports from Corpus Christi to Houston to Port Arthur, disrupting vital trade flows.
Matt Smith, ClipperData analyst, notes that the closure of refineries has had an immediate impact on the global oil market, but he expects a fairly quick recovery as the refineries come back on line. He said that Corpus Christi had sustained limited damage and might recover as soon as next week. Houston, on the other hand, was too soon to call.
Our data underscores the strategic role of the affected deep-water ports in U.S. petroleum trade:
Update 09-01-2017: This morning’s Harvey situation report from the Department of Energy indicates the Coast Guard has set the following conditions for these Texas ports:
- Freeport, Galveston, Texas City – Port Condition Recovery. Open with restrictions as of August 30.
- Corpus Christi – Port Condition Recovery. Open with restrictions as of August 31.
- Houston – Port Condition Recovery. Open with restrictions as of August 31. [The Houston Port Authority reports this afternoon that all facilities have resumed operations. BCT and Bayport gates will be open Labor Day, Sept. 4.]
- Beaumont, Nederland, Orange, Port Arthur, Port Neches, Sabine Pass. Closed (since August 30).
In addition, Louisiana’s Port of Lake Charles is closed while the ports of Berwick and Morgan City are open with restrictions as of August 30.
For a more detailed view of the value and mix of trade disrupted by Hurricane Harvey, download a free data report on the top imports and exports shipping through Texas Gulf ports Houston, Corpus Christi, Port Arthur, Texas City, Freeport, Beaumont and Galveston. The report ranks products by value in trade in June 2017, the latest month’s data available, and provides comparison data from August a year ago.
Here’s how you can help out the people of Houston and south Texas: Click through https://www.redcross.org/donate/hurricane-harvey or text HARVEY to 90999 to donate $10.
