A Hurricane Ida unknown: Economic impact on region and US

By FRANK BAJAK
Associated Press

Companies evacuated oil and gas platforms south of Louisiana ahead of Hurricane Ida but a far greater worry was potential damage to refineries and petrochemical plants in its projected path from flooding and storm surge. The Mississippi River industrial corridor between Baton Rouge and New Orleans is along the projected path of a storm whose maximum sustained winds are expected to reach 130 mph at anticipated landfall late Sunday. Louisiana’s 17 oil refineries account for nearly one-fifth of the nation’s refining capacity. While federal officials are concerned about the impact to the local energy supply it’s less clear whether the effect could we wider. Analysts say it’s too early to say.