Reuters: Surging Shipping Costs Disrupt U.S. Oil Exports

According to Reuters, soaring sea freight costs and refinery capacity constraints have disrupted U.S. oil exports.

According to the report of Ambassador Arjan, quoted by Reuters, the jump in the cost of sea transportation and the limitation of the capacity of refineries have disrupted the export of American oil and fueled the accumulation of heavy crude oil in the American continent. At the same time, Asian and European buyers are facing difficulty in providing the oil they need.

The increase in the cost of transporting oil from America to foreign markets, along with the continuation of the war with Iran and the disruption of energy trade, has changed the equations of oil supply in the world market.

According to this report, the cost of renting giant oil tankers to transport oil from the coast of the Gulf of Mexico to Asia has increased more than five times since February.

Last week, the cost of transporting an oil shipment to Asia reached more than 80 million dollars, equivalent to about 40 dollars per barrel; While this cost was between 10 and 15 million dollars at the beginning of the year.

The cost of transporting oil from America to Europe last week, including the transfer of cargo between ships and other costs, reached about 46 million dollars, which is equivalent to 24 dollars and 50 cents per barrel, and compared to about 6.5 million dollars recorded before the start of the war with Iran in late February, it shows a significant increase.

The increase in the cost of transportation has occurred in a situation where US refineries are facing capacity constraints.

According to the data of the US Energy Information Administration, the country's refineries have been operating at an average of 93.5% capacity this year, which is the highest level in the last 28 years. This situation has limited the ability of refineries to absorb more oil.

At the same time, high oil production in the United States, Canada and Venezuela has put more pressure on the heavy oil market in the Americas. Scott Shelton, an energy expert at TP ICAP, says these countries depend on exports, especially to Asia, to balance their domestic market; But the high cost of transportation has made it difficult to access these markets.

At the same time, the price of heavy oil from Canada, Colombia and Ecuador has decreased by more than 10 dollars per barrel in six weeks. This trend shows that the increase in oil prices in the world market is not necessarily to the benefit of all producers, and transportation costs and the limitation of the capacity of refineries can put pressure on the oil exports of the United States and other producers in the region.