Phillips 66 Says 100 Million Barrels Will Take Time to Clear Hormuz as Shipping Stays Limited
Updated
Updated · Oklahoman.com · Jun 23
Phillips 66 Says 100 Million Barrels Will Take Time to Clear Hormuz as Shipping Stays Limited
3 articles · Updated · Oklahoman.com · Jun 23
Summary
90 million to 100 million barrels of crude remain trapped around the Strait of Hormuz, Phillips 66 CEO Mark Lashier said, warning the backlog will clear only gradually even as some transit resumes.
Limited shipping has eased immediate supply fears and pushed oil prices lower, but Lashier said full onshore tanks and uncertainty over normal traffic will slow any meaningful ramp-up in flows.
Phillips 66 kept refineries running at extraordinary rates during the disruption, leaning on North American crude and Jones Act waivers to move refined products west and crude east.
U.S. SPR releases and low inventories at the Cushing, Oklahoma hub helped cap the shock and kept crude from hitting $200 a barrel, but Lashier said those buffers were temporary.
That leaves the market facing a likely structural shift in the crude price floor even after Hormuz traffic normalizes.