EIA: waterborne oil shipments from the US Gulf Coast to Florida increase

21% of combined motor gasoline, distillate fuel oil and jet fuel leaving the US Gulf Coast for the East Coast, which includes Florida, was shipped by tanker and barge so far in 2023, compared with 18% in 2010, according to the EIA's Petroleum Supply Monthly. Although some tanker and barge shipments occasionally go to other states along the East Coast, almost all go to Florida.

 

Consumption of motor gasoline, distillate fuel oil, and jet fuel in the states along the US East Coast has been about the same this year compared with 2010. However, the method of delivery of these fuels from the US Gulf Coast has changed as fuel receipts by waterborne vessel have increased more than fuel receipts by pipeline, indicating consumption growth in Florida. The state receives almost all the tanker and barge shipments from the US Gulf Coast and lacks the infrastructure to move petroleum products to other states. These changes imply declines in consumption of transportation fuel in other US East Coast states.

Year-to-date through July 2023, tanker and barge movements from the US Gulf Coast to the East Coast accounted for 15% of East Coast motor gasoline consumption (measured as product supplied), up from 12% in 2010. Distillate fuel tanker and barge movements accounted for 12% (up from 7%), and jet fuel tanker and barge movements accounted for 18% (up from 11%).

Like other East Coast states, Florida receives most of its petroleum products from US Gulf Coast refiners. However, the state has no direct access to the two major pipelines that serve East Coast states, Colonial and Products SE. Instead, Florida receives most of its fuels shipped by water vessels from the US Gulf Coast, although some portions of the state receive shipments by truck from Colonial Pipeline spurs that end in southern Georgia. The rest of the state’s fuels come from imports.

Florida is one of the fastest growing states in the country. The state’s population grew 18% between 2010 and 2022, from 18.8 million residents to an estimated 22.2 million residents. Populations in other East Coast states have also risen, but relatively slowly in comparison. Florida surpassed New York as the East Coast’s most populous state in 2014. The region’s second- and third-most populous states — New York and Pennsylvania — each grew by 0.3 million residents from 2010 to 2022. Indexed to 2010, Florida has grown more than any other East Coast state.

Driving and gasoline sales data from the US Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) show more driving activity and motor gasoline consumption in Florida than in any other state in the East Coast region. Although all states faced reduced driving and gasoline sales during the COVID-19 pandemic, not all have returned to pre-pandemic levels of activity. Among the three most populous East Coast states, Florida returned to and surpassed its pre-pandemic level of driving activity—measured by vehicle miles traveled (VMT) in 2022 and remains at higher levels through 2023, based on a 12 month moving average. Pennsylvania’s VMT returned to pre-pandemic levels this year, while New York’s VMT remains below pre-pandemic levels.

Read the article online at: https://www.hydrocarbonengineering.com/refining/26102023/eia-waterborne-oil-shipments-from-the-us-gulf-coast-to-florida-increase/