Reuters/Houston

US authorities prepared to partially re-open the Houston Ship Channel yesterday afternoon after an oil barge spill shut it for a third day, forcing the nation’s second-largest refinery to curb production.
The US Coast Guard has told ship operators that it should be able to reopen the waterway later in the day, resuming at least some supply of crude oil to more than one-tenth of the nation’s refining capacity.
A Coast Guard spokesman declined to discuss the timeline. Earlier, officials had said the channel could remain shut for several more days.
The closure of the channel on Saturday has led to a queue of more than 80 vessels trying to move into or out of the Gulf of Mexico, with shipping delays forcing Exxon Mobil Corp to cut production at its largest refinery.
Exxon said production at its 560,500 barrel per day Baytown, Texas, refinery had been cut yesterday due to the closure of the Houston Ship Channel. The company expects further production cuts by mid-week if the channel remains shut.
The Houston Ship Channel was shut on Saturday after a collision between a Kirby Inland Marine oil barge and a cargo ship, spilling some 4,000 barrels, or 168,000 gallons, of residual fuel oil. The channel allows oil barges and cargo ships to sail from the Gulf Coast to refiners and terminals further inland.
By noon CDT (1800 GMT) yesterday, a Coast Guard plane had flown over the channels to Houston and Texas City, Galveston and the Intracoastal Waterway where they were shut near the entrance to Galveston Bay. The overflight is the second of the day to determine if the oil has moved out of the waterway.
“We’re trying to determine when we can get to a partial re-opening of the channel,” said Coast Guard Petty Officer Matthew Schofield, a spokesman for the maritime safety service, which is overseeing the cleanup.
A total of 43 ships were waiting to leave the port of Houston and 38 ships were waiting to come in, up from 40 outbound and 35 inbound on Sunday evening.
Kirby Inland Marine is operated by Kirby Corp Cleanup crews have pumped all of the remaining fuel oil from the barge, which has been refloated and moved to a different position near the site of the collision in the channel.