Dozens of international chemical and oil refining giants were forced to close!

It was learned that while the United States was hit by the epidemic, it was also facing Hurricane Laura. The National Hurricane Center said that wind speeds as high as 115 miles (185 kilometers) per hour when Laura went ashore early on Thursday morning.

With the onset of Hurricane Laura, the US Coast Guard temporarily closed the ports of Louisiana, including the Port of New Orleans (NOLA), the Port of South Louisiana and the Port of Baton Rouge ( Port of Rouge).

Although the port is currently in good condition, no ships are allowed to enter or sail in these ports without the permission of the port COTP, and all ship-to-shore operations must be stopped until further notice.

The threat posed by Hurricane Laura has triggered large-scale evacuations in Texas and Louisiana. The cities of Galveston and Port Arthur in Texas issued mandatory evacuation orders to all residents on Tuesday morning. More than 385,000 residents were asked to leave Beaumont, Galveston, and Port Arthur in Texas, and another 200,000 were ordered to leave the low-lying areas of southwestern Louisiana.

On the morning of the 25th (Tuesday), Laura escalated into a hurricane. It is expected to become a Category 3 hurricane to make landfall on Wednesday night or Thursday morning. The storm is currently expected to make landfall east of Houston, near the border of Texas and Louisiana, but the situation may change. According to the latest news, the arrival of ships after the storm will be decided by the USCG and the Houston pilot based on the channel conditions.

According to the latest weather conditions on the port’s website, the port will be closed at 4 pm on the 25th and will provide services for all trucks before 5 pm. The Port of Houston said the port will also suspend its general cargo/multi-function terminal operations. The port said in a statement: "We expect to be completely closed on Wednesday, August 26 and possibly Thursday, depending on the storm path." "The operation of the weekend gate will be assessed based on local/regional impact. Once The length of the terminal closure is determined, and the container free period can be extended."

Hurricane Laura may affect areas from Houston and Galveston to the north, the Port Beaumont-Arthur area, and more northeast, including Lake Charles in Louisiana.
According to comprehensive U.S. media reports, it is expected that in the next 24 to 36 hours, Laura’s momentum will be further strengthened, reaching the level of a Category 3 hurricane, with speeds of up to 115 mph, and on Wednesday (26th) evening or week. Landing on the Texas-Louisiana border on the 4th (27th), although the actual route may change, due to its momentum, it may cause devastating damage in the relevant area.
The hurricane makes landfall and many petrochemical plants are closed, seriously affecting the US oil industry
Laura's goal is directed at the heart of the US energy industry. More than 80% of the oil production in the Gulf of Mexico and one-third of the refining capacity in the coastal areas have ceased operations. Oil exports were interrupted and personnel were forced to evacuate. This will be the first severe storm to hit the Gulf Coast since Hurricane Michael in 2018.
The Energy Information Administration (EIA) under the U.S. Department of Energy said that Laura will attack areas that account for more than 45% of the U.S. refining capacity and contribute 17% of oil production. The Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement, an agency responsible for environmental safety under the United States Department of the Interior, announced on the 25th that the region that accounts for 84.3% of the oil production in the Gulf of Mexico has ceased production, and the region accounting for 60.9% of natural gas production has also ceased production.
Oil companies including Exxon Mobil, Royal Dutch Shell, Chevron and British Petroleum have evacuated personnel on offshore rigs in the Gulf of Mexico, and non-essential facilities have been suspended. On the 25th, due to the temporary closure of many refineries in Texas and Louisiana, about 84% of the Gulf of Mexico offshore production areas were shut down.
The latest news from the National Hurricane Center shows that Hurricane Laura has crossed the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico, causing its wind to increase. It is expected to be on the border of Texas and Louisiana early on Thursday. Logging in nearby threatened many chemical plants and oil refineries.
Near the landing point are Beaumont, Port Neches and Port Arthur in Jefferson County, Texas. On the Louisiana side is the parish of Calcasieu, which has Westlake and Lake Charles.
Petrochemical plants and refineries have planned to close their facilities. Others pay attention to the dynamics of the hurricane while running.

Market sources said Lucite closed its methyl methacrylate (MMA) plant late on Monday in response to an evacuation order from Jefferson County.
ExxonMobil has reduced the operating rate of its Beaumont refinery.
Phillips 66 shut down crude oil production in Lake Charles.
Sasol closed its Lake Charles plant before the storm.
Thailand's Indorama Ventures PCL (IVL) stated that it has begun preparations to close its port of Neches plant. It produces ethylene oxide (EG), ethylene glycol (EG), surfactants and propylene oxide (PO), etc.
Valero and Motiva Enterprises are closing the oil refinery in Port Arthur.
Motiva also shut down the cracker in Port Arthur.
Louisiana Pigment Company (LPC) will close its titanium dioxide plant in Lake Charles, Louisiana. The company is a joint venture between Kronos Worldwide and Venator Materials.
Before the storm, BASF Total's cracker in Port Arthur had been suspended.
In addition, according to ICIS reports, some chemical plants have also announced closure measures:
INVISTA will close its adiponitrile (ADN) and hexamethylene diamine (HMDA) plants in Orange, Texas. It is reported that since the deployment of the most advanced ADN technology in 2014, the plant has continuously set new adiponitrile production records.
INEOS Styrolution is closing its styrene plants in Bayport, Texas and Texas City, Texas.
Chevron Phillips Chemical Company is closing its high-density polyethylene (HDPE) plant in Pasadena.
Hurricane Laura also shut down at least one-third of the US synthetic rubber production capacity.
As of Monday, several companies are paying attention to the dynamics of the storm.
There are several factories producing styrene butadiene rubber (SBR) in the area.
The following table identifies some of the major factories along the Gulf Coast.

The super typhoon "Bavi" struck, many places were suspended, and ports and terminals stopped operations
While the United States was hit by a hurricane, the domestic weather did not "quit." The center of this year's No. 8 typhoon "Bavi" made landfall on the coast of North Ping An Road near the border between China and North Korea at around 8:30 am on the 27th. The maximum wind force near the center was 12 (35 m/s) when it landed. At around 11 o'clock, Typhoon "Bavi" entered Kuandian, Dandong City, Liaoning Province, and its intensity dropped to a severe tropical storm level (level 10, 25 meters per second).
Typhoon "Bavi" came northward, bringing the wind and rain straight to Liaoning. From the 27th to the 29th, there will be heavy to torrential rains in most parts of Northeast China, strong winds of magnitude 9-10 in eastern Liaoning and southeastern Jilin, and gusts of magnitude 11-13 in some areas.
Dalian, Qingdao and many other places have issued red warnings for heavy storms!

The Liaoning Provincial Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters announced on the 27th that various gatherings and group activities will be cancelled in the affected areas, and the "six stop" will be implemented, namely: scenic spots will be closed; shopping malls, entertainment venues, and restaurants will be closed; construction sites will be closed ; All kinds of education and training institutions are suspended; fishing vessels and cargo ships are parked for shelter from the wind; all transportation vehicles are stopped, and the drivers and passengers should go to safe places for shelter.

After Bavi arrived in the Yellow Sea, it strengthened again and reached the level of a magnitude 14 typhoon. Bahwe is already the strongest typhoon in the Yellow Sea since there are meteorological records, and it can be called the Yellow Sea Wind King. It will land in Dandong, Liaoning or the southern coast of Sinuiju, North Korea, with an intensity of 12-13. If it landed in Liaoning, it would become the strongest typhoon in Liaoning and the entire Northeast since 1949, that is, the "wind king" in the Northeast.
When the typhoon hits, the first thing to bear is the freight issue affecting ports. In order to ensure safety, notices have been issued in many places, ships berthing and halted, and dock operations have stopped.
The Dalian Container Terminal Dispatch Center issued an emergency notice: Due to the strong wind in the port area, since 10:30 on the 26th, all DCT ships will stop at 10:30 on the 26th, and ship operations at berths 3#~18# will stop, and operations at all operating areas will stop, if any Other changes will be notified as soon as possible, please be aware. Due to the strong wind in the port area, since 22:00 on the 25th, all operations in the empty container and large stacking area of DCT have stopped. Since 00:00 on the 26th, heavy container operations in all DCT operating areas have stopped.

At present, all passenger ships and land-island transport ships within Dalian's jurisdiction have been suspended, and all dangerous goods transport ships have left berth to avoid wind.

All sea passenger routes including land-island transport ships from Dandong to Zhangdao and Daludao have also been suspended. The China-Korea passenger and cargo liner "Oriental Pearl 6 (VI)" will stop once in a sheltered voyage at Incheon Port in South Korea.

Liaoning's emergency response to typhoon prevention was upgraded to Level II. According to the forecasts of the Meteorological Department, the maximum wind speed and instantaneous wind speed of Typhoon Bavi when it makes landfall are expected to approach or exceed historical extremes, and may become the strongest typhoon to land in Liaoning since 1949. Affected by this, severe storms and rains will appear in Liaoning Province, and the situation of flood prevention and typhoon prevention will be severe. The Provincial Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters issued an orange warning at 10:00 on August 26, raising the emergency response to typhoon prevention to level II.

Shandong Port Weihai Port completed the height reduction of container stacks ahead of schedule, and at the same time reinforced empty containers to prevent containers from falling.

According to the requirements of typhoon defense work during the emergency response period, the government and relevant departments must do a good job in typhoon prevention and emergency response work according to their duties; stop indoor and outdoor large-scale gatherings, classes, and business (except for special industries); relevant waters and water operations and passing ships should return to port Avoid wind, strengthen port facilities, and prevent ships from anchoring, stranding and collision. For reinforcement or dismantling of structures that are easily moved by wind, personnel in dangerous houses shall be moved in time; relevant areas shall pay attention to preventing mountain torrents and geological disasters that may be caused by heavy rainfall.

Qingdao issued a red rainstorm warning, and rainstorm streets became a river; Qingdao Meteorological Observatory issued a rainstorm red warning signal at 10:00 on August 26, 2020. It is estimated that in the next 12 hours, there will still be intermittent heavy rainfall in most parts of Qingdao and offshore waters. Please take precautions.

The Yantai Maritime Department issued a yellow warning for maritime risks, and passenger ships on inter-provincial routes across the Bohai Strait were suspended at 16:00 on the 26th. The fishery administration department also launched an emergency plan for marine and fishery typhoon defense, urging fishing boats to stay in harbors to avoid wind.

△On the 26th, Yantai, Shandong continued to issue yellow warnings for marine risks, and a large number of ships were sheltering at anchorages at Yantai Port
From the perspective of the intensity and real-time path of Bavi, strong winds and heavy rainfall are inevitable, which will have a greater impact on northern ports such as Dalian Port and Qingdao Port. It may cause a series of effects such as delays in shipping schedules, road congestion, congestion in the port area, and damage to goods; please arrange the delivery time reasonably, pay attention to the notice of the port area and shipping company at any time, and arrange the shipment reasonably to avoid unnecessary losses !

It is understood that the typhoon directly affected my country's Jiangsu, Shandong and northeastern regions. Some chemical companies' factories flooded and their plants were flooded. The huge impact of the US hurricane also caused local chemical companies to shut down their factories. Coupled with the recent fluctuations in oil prices, the chemical industry has been hit hard. According to industry insiders, what should be worried about later is not whether the price will rise, but whether the market supply is in place.