Tampa:
Sources reported improving refinery runs in the U.S., although with phosphate production likely reduced into early November, producers have limited destinations to send sulfur. Lower fourth-quarter pricing at Tampa contrasted against increases in a number of key international markets.
“All indexes are up except Tampa, disconnecting (that market) from the rest of the world,” one player said, adding that this would likely tighten things up in the U.S. as Canada, California, and the U.S. Gulf are incented to go offshore. “It will be interesting to see how quickly the U.S. corrects, or if it does,” he said.
The fourth-quarter contract price of molten sulfur delivered to Tampa was pegged at $183/lt CFR, down $12/lt from $195/lt CFR in the prior period.
Refining capacity in the U.S. firmed to 88.1 percent for the week ending Sept. 24, up from 87.5 percent in the prior week, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported. The rate topped both the year-ago 75.8 percent and the 85.9 percent five-year average.
Crude inputs firmed to an average 15.415 million barrels/d through the period, a 68,000 barrel/d increase on the 15.347 million barrels/d rate reported in the prior week.
U.S. Gulf:
Royal Dutch Shell Plc has issued tentative plans to restart the company’s Norco plant, located west of New Orleans, La., in mid-October, Reuters reported. The 230,000 barrel/d facility, powered down on Aug. 28 ahead of Hurricane Ida, has remained shut due to flooding and wind damage sustained during the Category 4 storm.
Seven out of nine refineries shut by Ida have since returned to service, reports indicated, with only Shell’s Norco plant and the 255,000 barrel/d Phillips 66 Alliance, La., refinery still offline. Alliance was reportedly flooded following a levee break, and will require months of repairs before a restart is attempted. Due to the staggering repair costs expected, Phillips has reportedly considered mothballing the facility altogether.
Genscape on Sept. 30 reported the shutdown of a 174,000 barrel/d crude distillation unit (CDU) and an 85,000 barrel/d vacuum distillation unit (VDU) at the Citgo refinery in Corpus Christi, Texas. Maintenance at the plant is scheduled for the fourth quarter.
Motiva shut its 85,000 barrel/d VPS-2 crude section at Port Arthur, Texas, on the morning of Sept. 30.
Increasing activity was reported from a 96,000 barrel/d fluidic catalytic cracking unit and a 22,000 barrel/d alkylation unit at the Valero Corpus Christi (West) refinery on Sept. 29, although both units remained below normal operational levels. The units were shut on Sept. 23.
Price increases at Brazil were noted driving ideas higher in the U.S. Gulf, despite ongoing logistics issues widely expected to leave the market unable to fully capitalize on available netback potential. Players generally quoted the market in the $190-$200/mt FOB range, rising from $173-$181/mt FOB reported previously.
Brazil:
Sources said Copebras awarding a tender in the mid-$240s/mt CFR during the week, marking a steep move up from the market’s last-reported $210-$216/mt CFR range. Trammo was believed to win the tender, although the cargo’s point of origin remained unclear on Sept. 30.
Fourth-quarter contracts for delivery to Brazil were quoted moving up to $234/mt CFR, increasing from $221-$223/mt CFR in the third quarter.
Vancouver:
Vancouver prills were steady in the $180-$192/mt FOB range, unmoved from week-ago levels.
Alberta:
Sources called Alberta sulfur netbacks unchanged at $68-$122/mt FOB for the week.
West Coast:
Genscape reported the Sept. 24 restart of a 105,000 barrel/d CDU at the Marathon Wilmington, Calif., refinery. All monitored units at the facility were shut on Sept. 17 due to a power outage triggered by a 4.4-magnitude earthquake in the Los Angeles area. A 32,000 barrel/d hydrocracker and a 15,000 barrel/d catalytic reformer were reported coming online on Sept. 21.
The Marathon Carson plant successfully restarted a 37,000 barrel/d CDU and a 55,000 barrel/d hydrocracker on Sept. 24. Multiple units at Carson were also shut due to the Sept. 17 earthquake, Genscape reported.
West Coast prill indications continued to be heard in the $180-$192/mt FOB range, steady from one week earlier.
Fourth-quarter molten sulfur contracts loading from West Coast locations were quoted firming to the $160-$170/lt FOB range, up from $150-$155/lt FOB in Q3. Average contract pricing for the new quarter was pegged at $165/lt FOB.
China:
The most recent China spot imports continued be heard in the $230-$240/mt CFR range, unmoved from one week earlier.
Qatar:
Prilled sulfur loading from Qatar in October lifted to $192/mt FOB Ras Laffan, sources said, a $14/mt increase from $178/mt FOB reported for September.