Texas ports could fully reopen Thursday: Pilots

Major Texas ports are likely to rescind draft restrictions and begin operating at full capacity Thursday with port facility damage limited and shipping channels free of significant blockages following Hurricane Beryl, according to vessel piloting services.

The US Coast Guard authorized most Texas ports to open for daylight hours only starting today, with 30 ft draft restrictions in the port of Houston and 35 ft in the ports of Galveston and Texas City. But with "no major obstructions" being found in the channels and final surveys by the US Army Corps of Engineers and the US Coast Guard expected soon, those restrictions may be lifted by the end of day Wednesday, according to Galtex Pilots director of operations Erik Stramblad.

The restrictions slowed vessels traffic in and out of the port of Houston to about 66pc of the "typical count of 55-60 vessels daily", according to Houston Pilots Association chief operating officer JJ Plunkett.

"We're working with the Coast Guard and the Army Corps of Engineers to get their final surveys," Plunkett said. "Tomorrow [the port of Houston] will probably have a deeper draft."

The resulting buildup of vessels around Texas ports is likely to clear quickly once normal operations resume, according to Stramblad.

"The number of vessels waiting is about the same [as usual]," Stramblad said. "It's only been a couple of days [of downtime]. It tends to clear itself up quickly once we have the full draft back."

Some private terminals within the ports of Texas City and Galveston need to provide their own status assessments before operations can fully resume, Stramblad said.

"Nobody wants to hit something that shouldn't be there," Stramblad said.

Ship-to-ship transfers of crude, refined products and other commodities resumed off the Texas coast on Tuesday. At least two charterers today sought Suezmax tankers for crude lighterings in the US Gulf coast from 12 July.

By Ross Griffith