Texas Cold Snap Forces Closure of Certain High-Energy Industrial Facilities

Severe Winter Weather Disrupts Texas Gulf Coast Industry

Photographer: Brandon Bell/Getty Images

A powerful winter storm moving across the United States has started to impact major industrial facilities along Texas’ Gulf Coast. Refineries, chemical plants, and manufacturing sites are experiencing operational interruptions as a result of the extreme cold.

Nearly 10% of the nation’s natural gas output is currently offline due to freezing temperatures, with the majority of the issues centered around gas supply.

Goodyear Bayport announced the closure of its Pasadena, Texas chemical facility on Saturday, taking precautionary measures ahead of the anticipated freeze, according to a statement on the Community Awareness Emergency Response website.

Exxon Mobil Corp. also reported shutting down certain units at its Baytown, Texas refinery due to the cold snap. Meanwhile, Celanese Corp. scaled back operations at its Houston-area chemical plant as conditions deteriorated, as noted in a public disclosure.

Texas Instruments revealed that its Richardson site near Dallas faced a reduction in natural gas supply from its utility provider because of the storm, as detailed in a regulatory document.

Data from BNEF indicates that U.S. natural gas production has dropped by approximately 10 billion cubic feet in recent days, as frozen pipelines have restricted supply. At the same time, demand for heating fuel has surged by about 18 billion cubic feet.

For those trading oil, the slowdown in industrial activity may complicate predictions that weather-related supply disruptions would drive up oil prices, since the storm is also curbing crude consumption.

In the Permian Basin of West Texas, an Energy Transfer gas plant reported receiving gas that did not meet industry standards over the weekend, with the cold weather worsening the situation.

Goodyear Bayport, Texas Instruments, and Energy Transfer were not immediately available for additional comments.

Reporting assistance by Nathan Risser.

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