Westlake says Louisiana facilities largely undamaged

Westlake Chemical said its Louisiana plants "incurred limited physical damage" from Hurricane Ida.

Westlake shuttered operations at its plants ahead of the storm, and did not provide an estimate as to when operations will resume. Restarting will depend on the availability of power and industrial gases, the Houston-based operator said.

Westlake operates a 1.36mn t/y steam cracker and derivative units in Lake Charles, Louisiana, and operates other derivative units in Geismar and Plaquemine, Louisiana.

Local utility Entergy said eight major power transmission lines serving much of the refinery-heavy New Orleans area were knocked out over the weekend, as well as some generating plants serving greater New Orleans. Power was restored to about 10pc of affected customers in the state by last night, but it may take much longer to restore power to the region.

By Amy Strahan