-Eastman Chemical shut down hydrocracking plant No. 4 at its Longview, Texas, facility after a Sunday pipe failure, Platts reports. A company spokeswoman said the repairs should be complete by the end of the week. The hydrocracking plant has an ethylene production capacity of 360,000 million tons per year.
-Tesoro is suing a county in Utah, alleging that new local ordinances prevent the company from building a crude oil pipeline from the Uinta Basin to Salt Lake City refineries. Via the Associated Press, Summit County’s council recently placed tight restrictions on pipeline construction near certain bodies of water, schools and high-use buildings.
-Outbound shipments of Eagle Ford crude oil from the Port of Corpus Christi increased by 61% year-over-year in June, according to Platts. Via the San Antonio Business Journal, June shipments were also up 5% month-over-month.
-Natural gas injection is on pace for a record overall build this year, according to the Energy Information Administration. Storage inventories hit their lowest level since 2003 at the end of this year’s heating season due to a particularly harsh winter. Abundant domestic gas production and relatively mild summer temperatures, however, have spurred the quickest injection ramp-up since 2003.
-Duke Energy agreed to acquire the partial ownership interest in generating assets held by the North Carolina Eastern Municipal Power Agency (NCEMPA) for $1 billion. NCEMPA has partial ownership in several Duke plants, representing approximately 700 megawatts of generating capacity. Duke and NCEMPA will also enter into a 30-year power supply agreement, assuring delivery to customers served by the plants affected by the deal.
