Can U.S. port infrastructure handle more crude exports?

NEW YORK, July 20 (Reuters) - U.S. crude shippers are exporting huge amounts of oil to meet strong demand from Europe following Russia's invasion of Ukraine and subsequent sanctions against Moscow. In coming years U.S. oil may find even more buyers overseas, but that could test the capabilities of U.S. export infrastructure.

HOW MUCH CRUDE DOES THE UNITED STATES TYPICALLY EXPORT?

U.S. crude exports averaged 3.7 million barrels per day (bpd) over the four weeks through late May, their highest since March 2020, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. More recently, exports are averaging 3.1 million bpd, making the United States one of the biggest crude exporters worldwide.

WHERE DOES THE UNITED STATES EXPORT OIL FROM?

The United States mostly exports from the Gulf Coast from ports including Houston, Corpus Christi and Beaumont, all in Texas. Corpus Christi is the largest, exporting about 2 million bpd of oil, followed by Houston at around 700,000 bpd, said Matt Smith, lead oil analyst for the Americas at Kpler.

In the first half of 2022, more than 99% of U.S. crude exports came out of the Gulf Coast, Kpler data showed.

U.S. ports have been expanding in recent years, including major dredging projects to handle larger tankers that can carry more oil, and some, like Corpus Christi, could potentially handle more exports.

The Port of Corpus Christi is undergoing an improvement project that, once completed next year, would expand the ship channel to increase U.S. exports. It will, however, still require ship-to-ship transfers as the ship channel is not deep enough to fully load the Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs), which hold about 2 million barrels, favored in other major ports.

The United States sends the majority of its crude - about 1.4 million bpd - to Europe, around 1 million bpd to Asia, 250,000 bpd to Canada, and other barrels to Latin America, Kpler's Smith said.