As Hurricane Harvey continues to run rampant over Texas, the ExxonMobil Baytown Complex has been shut down and all the company’s personnel have been evacuated from offshore facilities affected by the storm.
Flooding caused operational problems for the Baytown Complex, which in turn led ExxonMobil to begin the systematic shutdown of the facility in its entirety. While there will likely be some impact to the area from the closure, at this time ExxonMobil reports that it is doing everything it can to minimize any effects on both the community and its own employees.
“Our goal is to provide our customers with continued access to gasoline and diesel fuel so they in can turn supply their stations and customers,” the company wrote in a statement. “Provisions have been made to ensure emergency responders and other essential service providers requesting fuel are given priority.”
Meanwhile, other ExxonMobil facilities in the Gulf Coast remain in operation, but all those offshore facilities affected by the storm have had personnel evacuated. This includes both its Hoover and Galveston platforms, as well as the Hadrian South subsea production system. Presently, one production facility onshore–XTO–has also been affected. The company appears to be taking a policy of adjusting operations as needed and, as yet, this has not affected any of its Gulf Coast refineries.
However, some of the company’s operations are being affected by other closures beyond their control. The closure of the Houston Ship Channel has caused adjustments to rates at the Baytown refinery and forced delivery of crude shipments to be based on the allowance of channel conditions.