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#286
09-05-2005, 07:44 PM
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Reopening Gulf Refineries a Slow Process
Monday, September 05, 2005 JACKSON, Miss. — As half of the Gulf Coast refineries damaged by Hurricane Katrina begin to ramp up production this week, industry experts have this message: be patient. "What you've got are a whole series of requirements and processes and that takes days, if not weeks," said John Felmy, chief economist for the American Petroleum Institute. The going is also slow for the restoration of offshore oil and gas production. Almost 70 percent of normal oil production and half of the natural gas output remains shut down, according to the U.S. Minerals Management Service (search), which said activity is slowly recovering. Eight major refineries that produce gasoline, diesel and jet fuel and heating oil were knocked out of commission and the output at two others was cut by last week's killer hurricane and the flooding that followed. That cut overall U.S. refining capacity by more than 10 percent and contributed to a surge in retail gasoline prices and spot shortages around the country. Motiva Enterprises LLC (search), Marathon Oil Corp. (search) and Valero Energy Corp. (search) said that they hope to restart, and in some cases make fully operational, four of those refineries this week. Motiva, a joint venture between Royal Dutch Shell PLC and Saudi Refining Inc., said its Convent, La., refinery restarted on Sunday and its refinery in Norco, La., is expected to get started by mid-week. Both are located west of New Orleans. Marathon said over the weekend that its Garyville, La., refinery west of New Orleans should be fully operational early this week. Valero said it's still hoping to restart this week its St. Charles refinery about 15 miles from New Orleans. When running at 100 percent capacity, these four represent slightly more than 1 million barrels of refined oil product a day. In contrast, Chevron Corp.'s (search) 325,000 barrel-a-day refinery in Pascagoula, Miss., and ConocoPhillips' (search) 247,000 barrel-a-day facility in Belle Chasse, La., south of New Orleans have suffered major damage and are unlikely to resume production for some time, according to the U.S. Department of Energy. The ConocoPhillips facility, along with Exxon Mobil Corp.'s (search) Chalmette, La., refinery and Murphy Oil Corp.'s (search) facility in Meraux, La., also have no power. They represent nearly 690,000 barrels a day of refined oil products. But industry experts say that even after power is restored, restarting an oil refinery is a tricky and time-consuming process. Crews must be meticulous with repeated inspections, checking and rechecking for leaks. They must also ensure that all saltwater has been cleared or risk igniting a fire. "What you have is an important set of steps in terms of these are high-temperature, high-pressure facilities," Felmy said. "And that's if you have not had any damage, and we know from preliminary reports that's not the case." There are also work force issues. With communication lines either down or overloaded, many companies have not been able to locate displaced employees. Last week Shell Oil and Valero spoke out about efforts to locate and assist employees. In some cases, it may require providing shelter near the refineries. Valero estimated that almost 1,000 of its employees may have been affected by the storm, including 550 at its St. Charles refinery, scheduled to restart by week's end. On Monday afternoon, the company said it had heard from all but nine of its employees from the St. Charles work force. The company has set up a large air-conditioned tent equipped with a catering operation, according to Valero spokeswoman Mary Rose Brown. Additionally, the company has also dispatched 50 mobile homes to St. Charles for workers who may need temporary housing. "It appears a lot of our employees probably lost their homes," Valero Chief Executive Bill Greehey told employees last week at the company's San Antonio, Texas, headquarters. "Rest assured, we are going to take care of our employees. Whatever financial help they need, they will be taken care of by Valero." Cal Hodges, an Houston-based energy consultant, said companies may need to recruit retired workers for stopgap help. "We need to get the workers back, but we may need to be creative, too, in getting people to the refineries," Hodges said. "That's one way to do it." Refineries also will receive a boost from the Department of Energy, which agreed to lend oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Exxon Mobil, Valero, Placid Refining Co. LLC, BP PLC, Marathon and Total SA will collectively receive 12.6 millions barrels of oil. More is available. Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman (search) offered 30 million to be provided beginning Tuesday. The reserve supply, however, must be replenished by the companies once conditions return to normal. The Gulf of Mexico normally produces 1.5 million barrels of crude oil a day, or about a quarter of the United States' domestic output, according to the U.S. Mineral Management Service. The agency on Monday afternoon reported that about 70 percent of oil production remains shut in. Other developments critical to the Gulf's recovery include: — The Louisiana Offshore Oil Port, the nation's largest oil import terminal, has been unloading tankers, operating at about 75 percent capacity. It may hit full capacity this week. — Colonial Pipeline Co., which transports refined products from Houston to as far away as the Northeast, is operating at 76 percent capacity, up 3 percent from its weekend report. — Kinder Morgan Energy Partners' Plantation Pipe Line Co., which transports fuel from refineries to Eastern markets, has been capable of full capacity operations once it receives fuel from downed refineries. — Shell Pipeline Co.'s Capline pipeline system, which transport crude oil into the Midwest, is operating at approximately 40,000 barrels per hour; the normal rate is 45,000 barrels per hour. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,168517,00.html
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 save the cheerleader - save the world 
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#287
09-05-2005, 07:47 PM
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Hmmmm - well if not the editorial page of the NY TImes, what about the editorial page of every other paper in the country, Fox News, and Joe Scarborough?
 ______________________________________________________________ Clinton: Government 'failed' people HOUSTON, Texas (CNN) -- Former President Bill Clinton on Monday said the government "failed" the thousands of people who lived in coastal communities devastated by Hurricane Katrina, and said a federal investigation was warranted in due time. "Our government failed those people in the beginning, and I take it now there is no dispute about it," Clinton told CNN. "One hundred percent of the people recognize that -- that it was a failure." (See interview -- 2:32 ) He and former President George H. W. Bush have launched the Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund to help raise money for those left homeless by the storm. (Full story) Clinton is just the latest in a long line of critics who have blasted the federal government for not moving fast enough to help people in the immediate aftermath of Katrina, which slammed into the Gulf Coast one week ago as a Category 4 hurricane. He said that the utmost priority was saving people now -- and evaluating the mistakes in the months to come. "We've got the departments on the ground, we've got the military on the ground, we've got a chance to do it right now, and we should do it right," he said. "And then in an appropriate time we should analyze what went wrong and why and what changes should be made." As with the 9/11 commission charged with looking at the events leading up to and after the September 11, 2001 attacks, Clinton suggested a bipartisan Katrina commission be formed. It would investigate what went wrong and determine "what is the best structure and what are the best personnel decisions" to make in emergency management, he said. The elder Bush echoed Clinton's sentiment, telling CNN's Larry King that he is "not satisfied" with the handling of the hurricane's aftermath. Nonetheless, he defended his son's performance. "What can he do? He can just go out and do what he's doing today, showing that the federal government's involved, has been involved, will continue to be involved ... He cannot listen to every critic from the editorial page of The New York Times," the elder Bush said. Find this article at: http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/09/05/cli...ina/index.html
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save the cheerleader - save the world
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#288
09-05-2005, 07:54 PM
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#289
09-05-2005, 07:55 PM
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save the cheerleader - save the world
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#291
09-05-2005, 07:58 PM
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SNAP AND ZIIIIINGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG but, if so, let's see them and how they are worded. Again, Gov. Blanco did the required paperwork and FEMA acknowledged such by coming into action and taking over with the help of the state. If they were never requested, why were they there and why did they have drills over the last few decades to practice this scenario 
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save the cheerleader - save the world
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#293
09-05-2005, 08:16 PM
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According to that old hag, Bar Bush, things are working out "very well" for the refugees!
Barbara Bush: Things Working Out "Very Well" for Poor Evacuees from New Orleans By E&P Staff Published: September 05, 2005 7:25 PM ET updated 8:00 PM NEW YORK Accompanying her husband, former President George H.W.Bush, on a tour of hurricane relief centers in Houston, Barbara Bush said today, referring to the poor who had lost everything back home and evacuated, "This is working very well for them." The former First Lady's remarks were aired this evening on National Public Radio's "Marketplace" program. She was part of a group in Houston today at the Astrodome that included her husband and former President Bill Clinton, who were chosen by her son, the current president, to head fundraising efforts for the recovery. Sen. Hilary Clinton and Sen. Barack Obama were also present. In a segment at the top of the show on the surge of evacuees to the Texas city, Barbara Bush said: "Almost everyone I’ve talked to says we're going to move to Houston." Then she added: "What I’m hearing is they all want to stay in Texas. Everyone is so overwhelmed by the hospitality. "And so many of the people in the arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this--this (she chuckles slightly) is working very well for them."
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#294
09-05-2005, 08:16 PM
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"And so many of the people in the arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this (she chuckles slightly)--this is working very well for them." http://www.editorandpublisher.com/ea..._id=1001054719
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-Mikki 3317
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#295
09-05-2005, 08:16 PM
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Babs and former Pres. Bush are doing a good job, but they are spinning it to concentrate on everything but the five day delay for the evacuation, which they acknowledge was unacceptable.
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save the cheerleader - save the world
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#296
09-05-2005, 08:17 PM
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09-05-2005, 08:19 PM
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| strandinthewind |
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This message has been deleted by strandinthewind.
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#297
09-05-2005, 08:21 PM
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#298
09-05-2005, 08:27 PM
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My God (thanks Mac & Mikki!)
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#299
09-05-2005, 08:28 PM
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Remember, this is the woman who asked why she should waste her beautiful mind worrying about something like dead soldiers in Iraq. Now we know where Dubya gets his compassion. 
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#300
09-05-2005, 08:29 PM
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 I'm not entirely surprised, considering she said this at the start of the Iraq war: "Why should we hear about body bags and deaths? It's not relevant. So why should I waste my beautiful mind on something like that?"
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