US deep freeze shutters Texas oil refineries, disrupts pipelines

Texas produces roughly 4.6 million barrels of oil a day and is home to some of the United States’ largest refineries, spread throughout the Gulf Coast.

A deep freeze across Texas in the United States over the weekend took a toll on the energy industry in the largest US crude-producing state, shutting oil refineries and forcing restrictions from natural gas pipeline operators. The cold snap prompted the state’s electric grid operator to impose rotating blackouts, while President Joe Biden declared an emergency on Monday, unlocking federal assistance to Texas. Texas produces roughly 4.6 million barrels of oil a day and is home to some of the nation’s largest refineries, spread throughout the Gulf Coast. In Midland, heart of the US Permian shale region, temperatures were not only below freezing but in the single digits Fahrenheit.