Valero refinery in Port Arthur Texas is burning.

[Melon]

Not going to be good on chemicals or gasoline if this goes down hard. From the flames I’d say not short term.
From working in the area and industry, the smallest failure can lead to the biggest failure.

https://www.12newsnow.com/article/news/local/pillar-of-smoke-rising-from-valero-port-arthur/502-2fafa4f2-70c6-4bb3-b3ff-0ab6a599ac56


Edit… only two outside engines dispatched. Valero has its own fire department but that sounds relatively contained.

[dem4decades]

1. Another reason for more profits for big oil, higher prices for us.

[bluedigger]

2. Probably just a careless smoker.

Happens often at refineries these days according to the Russian press.

[Melon]

3. lol. You would be shot for have a cigarette on site.

But there’s plenty that can go wrong. Everything you make is flammable and every pipe is hot. Usually a seal issue or the boilers.

[2naSalit]

4. What about the heat wave?

Could that be a factor?

[Melon]

5. There is no heat wave.

It was 84 degrees today. That’s a nice day in October for Texas. Heat does nothing until it’s over 100, and that’s only because it affects the guys who works on it. The plants are running very hot. Heat is no issue.

They are fine down to freezing with most icing issues causing problems with electric going to the plants when it’s multi day below freezing. Ice on power lines.

[leftstreet]

6. Yikes

Looks like local news is reporting a sheriff's stmt that the likely cause was a heater

KFDM reports that Sheriff Zena Stephens attributes the Valero Port Arthur explosion to a probable industrial heater issue.

Link to tweet

?s=20

[Melon]

8. I'm not sure what a heater in that situation would be

But they are pulling feedstocks in the pipelines or gases and venting them to the flare. Getting the super flammables away from the fire.

[dweller]

9. Looks like

3 distinct fires


🫤



✌🏻

[multigraincracker]

7. I remember one of those fires years ago.

Pump prices jumped up the next day.

[Melon]

10. It'll have an affect. I imagine if they don't get messaging

Out quickly it’s going to get linked somehow to the war by the conspiracy crowd. The reality is that these things happen, usually years apart but something fails and the materials are flammable. It will affect gasoline and also chemicals at least locally.

Lyondell had a big fire last week. Oxea the week before. BASF earlier this year.

[hedda_foil]

11. Any suspicious drones reported in the area?

Just askin'

[Srkdqltr]

12. Crop duster? How Texas.

😁😁😁😁

[LeftInTX]

13. Boomberg has some details. All but two paragraphs are hidden under a hard paywall.

A fire broke out at a diesel hydrotreater, with the unit suffering severe damage, according to people familiar with the incident. The fire was near the plant’s fluid catalytic cracker, and part of the refinery has been shut down, according to the people, who said a decision hasn’t yet been made whether to shut the entire plant.