USL - How Will Ecuador Force Majeure Impact U.S. West Coast Refineries?
Latin America has become an increasingly important source of medium and heavy crude oil to feed America's west coast refineries.
Ecuador's location on the northwestern coast of South America has made it especially important for these facilities even if volumes emanating from the country have fluctuated significantly.
On one level, Ecuador's comparatively small oil production of about 500,000 bpd meant that its recently announced withdrawal from OPEC was not seen as especially significant.
However, the country's proximity to the US West Coast made it a logical supplier of substitute crude oil to offset declining Alaskan