Fergie's Tech Blog

Hurricane Rita could send gasoline prices soaring

John W. Schoem writes on MSNBC:

As the Gulf Coast braces for a hit from Hurricane Rita, U.S. motorists could get hit with pump prices well over $3 a gallon, or outright shortages, or both if the storm makes landfall in the heart of one of the biggest concentrations of oil refining in the world.

As of Wednesday, Rita was on track to make landfall to the west of the area south of Houston that is home to some 20 percent of U.S. refining capacity, according to Bill O’Grady, who follows the energy futures markets at A.G. Edwards in St. Louis.

“Of the 11 largest refineries in the U.S., six are in the path of this storm,” he said.

Valero Energy Corp. chief executive Bill Greehey said late Tuesday that the storm’s impact on U.S. crude oil production and refining could be a “national disaster.”

posted by Fergie @ 9/21/2005 03:31:00 PM