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US Coast Guard works to begin allowing ships to leave closed Houston Ship Channel areas

The US Coast Guard is working to set up a “locking system” in Houston Ship Channel areas where water was contaminated with significant amounts of benzene after a fire at the Intercontinental Terminals Co. tank farm and begin allowing ships out of Carpenters Bayou, the Old River and Jacinto Port, it said.

“There is still significant spillage in Jacinto Port, Carpenters Bayou and Old River,” the USCG Port Coordination Team (PCT) said on a conference call Friday. “Those areas remain boomed and all vessel traffic from/to those areas is currently restricted.”

While a 34-feet fresh water draft limitation on a seven-mile contamination zone between Tucker’s Bayou and Light 116 was rescinded Wednesday, during the PCT call, it emerged no decontamination lay berth capable of taking a Suezmax vessel is currently available.
The 157,850 DWT Suezmax Eagle San Juan has been moored in the seven-mile contaminated stretch since March 21 and has been overdue at Houston Anchorage since Wednesday, data from cFlow, S&P Global Platts’ trade flow software, show.

The Aframax NS Corona also arrived in the area on March 21 and remains stationary, while the Aframaxes Eagle Texas and Neverland Angel both arrived Wednesday from Galveston Lightering and Anchorage, according to cFlow.

Nine ships were assigned for departure from the restricted area, the Houston Pilots said during the PCT call, and 15-20 ships were expected to sail inbound Friday.

A total of 21 ships are awaiting outbound passage, 18 of which would have to pass the restricted zone, and 53 ships were queuing up to move inbound, the pilots said during the PCT conference call.

The suspension of movement in the ship channel affected the delivery and loading schedules of crude, petroleum and petrochemical products.

The 52-mile ship channel provides access from the Gulf of Mexico through Galveston Bay to various ports in Houston and other cities in the area that have many industrial facilities, including refineries, petrochemical plants and steel and metal facilities.

Source: Platts

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