Moda restarts crude loadings at Texas terminal

Moda Midstream has restarted crude loadings at its export terminal near Corpus Christi, Texas, after tropical storm Nicholas exited the region.

Nicholas shifted to the east before making landfall as a hurricane at about 1:30am ET 20 miles southwest of Freeport, Texas, sparing a direct hit on export facilities in Corpus Christi, Texas.

Moda reported no damage or power outages at the terminal at Ingleside, Texas. The Moda terminal has 15.6mn bl of storage capacity and can export up to 1.5mn b/d of crude.

NuStar Energy's Corpus Christi export terminal was also not impacted by the storm, the company said today. The Corpus Christi area, including Ingleside, has become the top hub to export US crude.

The Port of Corpus Christi reopened this morning while ports in the Houston area remained closed.

Nicholas caused widespread power outages in the Houston area, with some pipeline operations at least partially shutting down.

By Eunice Bridges