The Port of Baltimore remains shut down after a container ship collided with the Francis Scott Key Bridge early March 26, causing the 47-year-old structure to collapse into the Patapsco River within seconds, and the U.S. Coast Guard estimates the closure will last two to three weeks at least as remnants of the bridge are recovered. The Maryland port is the second-largest coal exporting hub in the U.S., second to the Port of Norfolk in Virginia, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. About 28% of all U.S. coal exports shipped out of Baltimore in 2023 – a total of 28 million short tons, up from just less than 20 million short tons in 2022. The U.S. Energy Information Administration was expecting slower coal export growth in 2024 of about 1%, and the port closure could affect export volumes.
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Core Apps in Tough Times – Makin’ Steam and Coking Coal-a
Coal is having a tough year. Producers must be wondering what else can go wrong. In spite of everything, coal continues to play an invaluable role in supplying US energy and as a raw material in steel manufacture. Today we take a closer look at where coal comes from and how it is used.
By now nearly everyone knows the US coal industry is on the ropes. In “Old King Coal is Down in the Hole” we learned how coal producers were hurting to the point of closing mines and restructuring. NYMEX Central Appalachian Coal prices have fallen 22 percent so far this year from $69.67/ short ton (ST) on January 3, 2012 to $54.60/ST on Wednesday (October 17, 2012). As natural gas prices fell below $2/MMBtu in April, power generators switched from using coal as a baseload fuel to natural gas on an unprecedented scale (see Talkin ‘Bout My Generation). Since over 90 percent of coal demand comes from power generation, coal consumption fell as a result. World demand for more valuable metallurgical coal has also slumped as China reduced steel output and the European economies continued to court recession. On top of all that, environmental legislation threatens future coal plant construction as well as the life of legacy plants that have to be retro fitted with expensive pollution control hardware to meet higher Clean Air standards.
Slow Ride - Crude Oil and NGL Export Challenges at the Port of Houston
In terms of raw tonnage, the Port of Houston is by far the busiest in the United States. The 52-mile-long Houston Ship Channel (HSC) — running from just outside downtown Houston out to an area between Galveston Island and Bolivar Peninsula — is the artery that enables the heavy ship traffic, much of it tied to crude oil, LPG, petroleum products and other hydrocarbons. But in the same way that Houston’s Interstate 45 traffic backs up during the morning commute, the ship channel traffic, which normally runs at about 60% of peak levels, can be (and has been) subject to delays when there’s an accident, visibility problems, or a slow-moving double-wide taking up two lanes. With energy-related export activity on the rise, efforts are underway to address those issues. Today, we begin a series on the issues facing some Texas ports and the measures being taken to help alleviate them.
Move It on Over—Ports and Pipelines Delivering East Coast Refined Products
Most of the gasoline, diesel, heating oil and jet fuel consumed in the U.S. East Coast region is piped in via long-distance pipelines from Gulf Coast refineries, but substantial amounts are moved in by ship—either from the Gulf Coast by Jones Act vessels or from overseas. These shipped-in volumes then need to make their way from port to consumer. Today we continue our examination of how transportation fuels and heating oil are delivered to East Coast users with a look at the ports and connecting pipelines that help move these critically important fuels.
