据钻机地带9月3日彭博社报道，因飓风“艾达”(Ida)导致路易斯安那州大部分炼油和石油生产中断，埃克森美孚(Exxon Mobil Corp.)正在动用美国战略石油储备(U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve，即SPR)来恢复路易斯安那州的汽油生产。
美国周四表示，美国将动用一切手段增加汽油供应，缓解油价压力，随后授权从政府紧急库存中提取150万桶原油。
白宫在一份电子邮件声明中表示,这是SPR四年来首次进行此类交流，表明将利用一切权力支持该地区的有效应对和恢复活动。
在“艾达”以每小时150英里的风速席卷该地区四天后，周四，墨西哥湾超过90%的石油生产仍然关闭。炼油厂占美国原油加工能力的近五分之一的路易斯安那州正在努力应对阻碍救援工作的燃料短缺，同时推高了全国的汽油价格。
政府运营的应急原油供应在20世纪70年代阿拉伯石油禁运后建立，储存在墨西哥湾沿岸的地下盐穴深处，在飓风过后已经使用过几次。
据美国能源部表示，埃克森美孚将在路易斯安那州的巴吞鲁日炼油厂使用这些原油。与贷款类似，石油生产商需要在两到三个月内将等量的石油返还给政府，外加一些溢价桶。
巴吞鲁日炼油厂周三表示，其已开始重新启动其在Ida之前关闭的装置。
埃克森美孚在一封电子邮件声明中表示，我们的主要重点是恢复燃料生产，以供应路易斯安那州当地市场所需的汽油和柴油。
据贸易商称，至少有三家公司一直在购买他们通常从墨西哥湾平台获得的原油等级。对这些稀缺供应的追捧已将 Mars Blend等海湾石油等级的价格推高至数月以来的最高水平。
荷兰皇家壳牌公司(Royal Dutch Shell Plc)表示，根据初步的交叉评估，其West Delta-143海上设施受损，该设施是Mars Blend所有资产生产的中转站。
除了海上物流外，路易斯安那海上油港是需要迅速恢复以帮助恢复生产的关键基础设施之一。通常称为 LOOP，接收与海上石油平台相连的管道上流动的原油。其在风暴来临前暂停交付。
LOOP处理多达15%的美国原油供应，还经营一个海上码头，离岸约45英里（合72公里），处理油轮运输的原油进出口。
与此同时，汽油价格预计将在劳工节周末前达到七年来的最高水平。在飓风“艾达”来临之前，美国约有12%的原油加工能力被关闭或减少。
周四，普通无铅汽油的全国平均价格上涨约1美分，至每加仑3.18美元，接近8月初创下的3.19美元的夏季高点。按照这个价格，这将是自2014年以来最昂贵的燃料。
郝芬 译自 钻机地带
原文如下：
Exxon Taps Strategic Oil Reserve
Exxon Mobil Corp. is tapping the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve to revive gasoline production in Louisiana after Hurricane Ida left much of the devastated state’s refining and oil production offline.
Authorization to take 1.5 million barrels of crude from the government’s emergency stockpiles came after US said Thursday the U.S. would use all the tools at its disposal to increase the availability of gasoline and ease pressure align="justify"> “This is the first such exchange from the SPR in four years and demonstrates that the US will use every authority available to him to support effective response and recovery activities in the region,” the White House said in an emailed statement.
Four days after Ida swept through the region with wind gusts of as much as 150 miles per hour, more than 90% of the Gulf of Mexico’s oil production was still shut align="justify"> The government-run supply of emergency crude -- established in the aftermath of the Arab oil embargo in the 1970s and stored deep underground in salt caverns along the Gulf Coast -- has been used a few times after hurricanes.
Exxon will use the crude for its Baton Rouge refinery in Louisiana, according to the Department of Energy. Similarly to a loan, the oil producer will need to return the same amount of oil to the government plus some premium barrels within two to three months.
The Baton Rouge refinery has begun the process of restarting its units, which were shut ahead of Ida, the company said Wednesday
“Our main focus has been to restore fuel production to supply gasoline and diesel needed in the local Louisiana market,” Exxon said in an emailed statement.
At least three companies have been shopping for crude grades they’d normally get from platforms in the Gulf of Mexico, according to traders. The hunt for these scarce supplies have pushed up prices for Gulf oil grades such as Mars Blend to the strongest levels in months.
Royal Dutch Shell Plc said its offshore West Delta-143 facilities that serve as the transfer station for all production from assets in the Mars corridor were damaged, based align="justify"> In addition to offshore logistics, align="justify"> LOOP handles as much as 15% of U.S. crude oil supply, and it also operates a marine terminal, some 45 miles (72 kilometers) offshore that handles imports and exports of crude transported by tanker.
Meanwhile, pump prices are expected to reach the highest level in seven years going into the Labor Day weekend. about 12% of the nation’s crude processing capacity was shut or reduced ahead of Hurricane Ida.
The national average price for regular unleaded gasoline rose about 1 cent Thursday to $3.18 a gallon and is approaching the summer high of $3.19 set in early August. At that price, it will be the most expensive Labor Day fuel since 2014.
