![](media/image1.jpeg){width="8.5in" height="3.5027777777777778in"}U.S.
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

**Office of Electricity, Delivery and\
Energy Reliability**

**ENERGY ASSURANCE DAILY**

**August 22, 2005**

######## Highlights, Major Developments

### Memphis Gasoline Supply Very Tight

Supplies of gasoline in the greater Memphis, Tennessee area were
extremely tight over the weekend, and continue to be so with allocations
reported among all suppliers. Some gasoline stations ran out of gasoline
over the weekend. The good news is that Premcor's 180,000 b/d Memphis
refinery knocked out by a power outage on August 12 is once again making
gasoline. Normal distribution in Memphis may take several more days,
assuming no more outages. Other U.S. refineries also had problems that
exacerbated the situation in Memphis. See refinery stories under
Petroleum section.

OPIS Price Watch Alert, 1126 August 22, 2005

######## Electricity

**Update -- PG&E to Increase Inspections Following Transformer
Explosion**

Pacific Gas and Electric announced that it will increase inspections of
its underground electric equipment following the explosion of a
transformer in the financial district of San Francisco on Friday. The
explosion did not cause any power outages but did lead to the evacuation
of several nearby buildings. (For additional details, see EAD August 19,
2005.)

<http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/050819/sff037.html?.v=16>

<http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/050820/nysa014.html?.v=10>

***32,000 Dominion Virginia Power Customers Lose Power Early
Saturday***\
More than 32,000 people - as well as the Siemens fuel injector plant and
Newport News/ Williamsburg International Airport - lost electricity
early Saturday, Dominion Virginia Power said. Although the cause of the
outage was undetermined, power was restored to all customers with two
hours.\
[*http://www.dailypress.com/news/local/dp-71192sy0aug21,0,4463136.story?coll=dp-news-local-final*](http://www.dailypress.com/news/local/dp-71192sy0aug21,0,4463136.story?coll=dp-news-local-final)

**18,000 Allegheny Power Customers Lose Power in Saturday Evening
Storm**

An Allegheny Power Co. spokesman reported at 9 p.m. that about 18,000
customers were without power in Southwestern Pennsylvania, including
8,000 in Washington County and some 2,200 in Greene County. In Greene
County power had been restored to all but about 600 customers by 9:15
p.m.

<http://www.observer-reporter.com/284063234309371.bsp>

**14,000 Customers in Upstate New York Lose Power Monday Morning**

About 14,000 Hamburg residents were without power this morning. NYSEG
officials say electricity went out around 2:30am. Although the cause of
the outage was undetermined, power was restored around 5:00am.
<http://www.wgrz.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=30840>

**Nine Mile Point Output Drops After Restarting**

The 565 MW unit 1 at Constellation Energy Group's Nine Mile Point
nuclear generating station cut output to 50 percent of capacity by
Monday morning when a problem was discovered with a feed-water pump. The
unit had reached full power after being shut down on August 18.

Bloomberg, 11:39, August 22, 2005.

### Brunswick Unit 2 Drops to 82 Percent, Unit 1 Drops to 90 Percent

The 900 MW unit 2 at Progress Energy's Brunswick nuclear generating
station dropped to 82 percent of capacity by early Monday morning
according to the daily status report of the Nuclear Regulatory
Commission. At the same time, the 938 MW unit 1 dropped to 90 percent of
capacity, down from 100 percent on Friday.

Reuters 7:35, August 22, 2005.

######## Petroleum

**See highlights above.**

### Continued Refinery Glitches Over Weekend Add to Memphis Area Gasoline Woes

OPIS Price Watch Alert, 1009, August 22, 2005

> **Update - Alkylation Unit at Citgo's Corpus Christi Refinery Back
> Up**
>
> An alkylation unit at Citgo's 165,000 b/d refinery Corpus Christi
> refinery that shut down on August 18 returned to service during the
> afternoon of August 19.
>
> Reuters 12:32, August 22, 2005.

### Update -- Repairs at Alon's Big Spring Refinery Completed

> Output at Alon's 61,000 b/d Big Spring refinery in Texas has been
> restored following a brief cut in runs to repair a crude vent gas
> compressor. According to the company, the production lost during the
> cutback has been made up.
>
> Reuters 11:49, August 22, 2005.
>
> **Update - Operations at PDVSA's Amuay Refinery Restored Following
> Fire**
>
> Operations at PDVSA's 635,000 b/d Amuay refinery in Venezuela have
> been restored following a fire that broke out when the refinery was
> hit by lightning. No units were damaged and production has returned to
> somewhat more than 400,000 b/d, the level of production before the
> fire.
>
> Reuters 11:10, August 22, 2005.
>
> OPIS 15:14, August 22, 2005.
>
> **Update - Valve Fails at ExxonMobil's Beaumont Refinery**
>
> ExxonMobil reported that a bypass valve failed at its 363,100 b/d
> Beaumont refinery in Texas. The valve is on a hydrocracker butane
> absorber. There was no information as to the when the unit would be
> returned to service or if the problem had any impact on production.
>
> Reuters 10:57, August 22, 2005.

### Ecuador Opens Talks with Protesters

The government of Ecuador has opened talks with the protesters whose
actions forced the government to declare force majeure last week.
Although production has increased by some 35,000 b/d, exports remain
suspended and although work is proceeding to repair damage done by the
protesters to the fields, full restoration of production could take some
months.

Reuters 14:13, August 22, 2005.

Reuters 10:37, August 22, 2005.

**Exports from Basra Interrupted but Resume**

According to an unnamed Iraqi source, power has been restored to allow
oil exports from Basra to resume. A power outage that some sources
attribute to sabotage, shutdown tanker loadings which had been averaging
1.5 million b/d. However, according to a Dow Jones report, the outage
reduced tanker loadings to about one third of normal as auxiliary pumps
were used to load the waiting tankers. The outage began at 7 am and
power to the pumps was restored by the afternoon.

<http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=1058481&CMP=OTC-RSSFeeds0312>

Reuters 6:22, August 22, 2005.

**Nigerian Protesters Lift Siege -- Production Restored**

Shell has restored production in Nigeria after protesters ended their
siege of Shell facilities. Shell agreed to meet with the protesters to
discuss compensation for an oil spill that occurred in 2003. (For more
information on the situation see EAD August 17, 2005)

Reuters 6:44, August 22, 2005.

**Storm Closes Russia's Principal Black Sea Port -- Bottles Up 900,000
b/d**

Russia's principal Black Sea oil port was closed by a storm on Saturday.
Reports from the area on Monday, August 22 indicate that officials
believe that the port could be reopened sometime Monday night or Tuesday
morning. Approximately 900,000 b/d are exported through the port of
Novorssiisk.

Reuters 6:26, August 22, 2005.

**Shell Shuts in 10,000 b/d of North Sea Production**

Shell has shut down some 10,000 b/d of crude oil production following
the discovery of a leak on its Bravo platform in the North Sea. The leak
was discovered on August 18 and the company has stated that the platform
will remain closed until the source of the leak has been determined and
repairs completed.

Reuters 11:38, August 22, 2005.

### New Jersey Joins List of States to Ban MTBE

New Jersey Acting Governor Richard J. Codey signed a bill Thursday that
will ban the sale of gasoline blended with methyl tertiary butyl ether
(MTBE), starting in January 2009. New Jersey becomes the 25^th^ state to
ban MTBE.\
Oil Daily, August 22, 2005

**Natural Gas**

**Sunrise County Economic Council Endorses Downeast LNG\'s Facility in
Maine**

The council endorsed the plan to construct an LNG facility in
Robbinston, Maine on August 17.

[*http://www.downeastlng.com/*](http://www.downeastlng.com/)

######## Other News

**Department of Energy to Test Nuclear Site Security**

The U.S. Department of Energy plans to test whether U.S. nuclear
installations could withstand terrorist truck−bomb attacks. DOE will
detonate two such bombs in the eastern Idaho desert.

http://www.tdn.com/articles/2005/08/18/area_news/news06.txt

########  

######## Energy Prices 

+-------------------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+
|                               | **Latest  | **Week    | **Year     |
|                               | (08       | Ago**     | Ago**      |
|                               | /22/05)** |           |            |
+-------------------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+
| **CRUDE OIL**                 | 65.46     | 66.21     | 46.00      |
|                               |           |           |            |
| **West Texas Intermediate     |           |           |            |
| US**                          |           |           |            |
|                               |           |           |            |
| \$/Barrel                     |           |           |            |
+-------------------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+
| **NATURAL GAS**               | 9.44      | 9.53      | 5.34       |
|                               |           |           |            |
| **Henry Hub**                 |           |           |            |
|                               |           |           |            |
| \$/Million Btu                |           |           |            |
+-------------------------------+-----------+-----------+------------+

> Source: Reuters

**This Week in Petroleum** from the Energy Information Administration
(EIA)

[*http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/oog/info/twip/twip.asp*](http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/oog/info/twip/twip.asp)

Updated on Wednesdays

**Weekly Petroleum Status Report** from EIA**\
**[*http://www.eia.doe.gov/oil_gas/petroleum/data_publications/weekly_petroleum_status_report/wpsr.html*](http://www.eia.doe.gov/oil_gas/petroleum/data_publications/weekly_petroleum_status_report/wpsr.html)

Updated after 1:00pm (Eastern time) on Wednesdays

**Natural Gas Weekly Update** from EIA

[*http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/oog/info/ngw/ngupdate.asp*](http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/oog/info/ngw/ngupdate.asp)

Updated after 2:00 pm (Eastern time) on Thursdays

**ENSEC threat awareness blog site** from Energy Assurance

[*http://ensec.blogspot.com*](http://ensec.blogspot.com/)