U.S. Propane Inventories Rise 1.7 MMbbl

U.S. propane stocks increased by another 1.7 MMbbl the week ended Sept. 19, according to the Energy Information Administration (EIA) in its Sept. 24 “This Week in Petroleum” report. The build for the most recent reporting period placed the nation’s propane supplies at 79.1 MMbbl, 13.7 MMbbl, or 20.9%, higher than a year ago. Gulf Coast inventories increased by 0.9 MMbbl, the Midwest by 0.6 MMbbl, and the Rocky Mountain/West Coast region and the East Coast by 0.1 MMbbl each, EIA said. Propylene non-fuel-use stocks represented 3.9% of total propane inventories, off from 4.3% the previous week.

U.S. propane production stood at 1.6 MMbbld, up just slightly week over week but standing nearly 0.2 MMbbld higher compared to last year. East Coast production was at 0.183 MMbbld, the Midwest 0.318 MMbbld, and the Gulf Coast 0.901 MMbbld. Although there was little variance between production totals for the week, the East Coast barely moved higher and the Midwest and Gulf Coast were virtually unchanged. For the year, East Coast production was up nearly 0.1 MMbbld, while the Midwest and Gulf Coast both contributed to fill out the remaining near-0.1 MMbbld annual gain.

Propane imports to the nation were at 0.070 MMbbld, barely registering a dip compared to a week earlier and falling just under the year-ago total. The East Coast received 0.019 MMbbld and the Midwest 0.040 MMbbld. U.S propane demand was at 1.137 MMbbld to mark a marginal improvement for the week while falling only minimally below last year.