IEA Monitoring Hurricane Ike Closely - 13 September 2008

The International Energy Agency (IEA) is closely monitoring the effects of Hurricane Ike which passed through the Gulf of Mexico earlier this week and made landfall early today near Houston, Texas, hitting areas with a high concentration of offshore oil and gas production facilities and refinery/gas processing installations. We are in close and continuing contact with officials from our 27 member governments, especially those in the United States. Once the impact of Ike becomes clear over coming days, together with the US Government the IEA will make an assessment of whether the storm caused severe and prolonged damage to oil facilities. If a significant supply disruption has occurred, bearing in mind prevailing market conditions, the IEA stands ready to act quickly and provide oil to the market as it did after Hurricane Katrina in 2005.

The Gulf region plays a key role in US energy supply. Total crude production from federal waters of the US Gulf of Mexico amounts to some 1.3 million barrels per day (mb/d), equivalent to 25% of total US crude output. Refinery distillation capacity on the Gulf Coast amounts to over 8 mb/d, around 47% of the US total. For natural gas, federal offshore waters account for around 7.5 bcfd of national production, some 12% of the total, with Louisiana (6%) and Texas accounting for significant quantities as well. According to well established procedures, oil and gas companies have evacuated platforms and shut in production as a precautionary measure ahead of the storm. Refining capacity was similarly shut-down ahead of Ike's landfall. Since the 2005 hurricanes, both industry and the US government have implemented measures to improve response and to strengthen and protect energy infrastructure, including vital power supplies. Although the oil market has somewhat more flexibility than at the time of Hurricane Katrina, sustained high price levels reflect continued concerns over supply-side issues.

The IEA will continue to update this site as more information becomes available.