Americas top stories: weekly summary

HOUSTON (ICIS)–Here are the top stories from ICIS News from the week ended 30 October.

Tariffs, delays, construction inflate LyondellBasell PO/TBA costs by 30%
Because of tariffs, delays and construction, LyondellBasell expects that costs will rise by at least 30% for its new propylene oxide/tertiary butyl alcohol (PO/TBA) project, executives said on Friday.

Shell to reduce refinery portfolio to six sites from 14
Shell plans to reduce its refinery portfolio to six sites from 14 by 2025, the company said on Thursday.

Almost 85% of US Gulf oil production remains shut in following Zeta
Almost 85% of US Gulf oil production is shut in and almost 2.5m customers remain without power as of midday Thursday because of Hurricane Zeta, which made landfall in Louisiana on Wednesday.

Almost 67% of US Gulf oil production shut as Hurricane Zeta nears Louisiana
Companies have shut in about two-thirds of oil production and a little less than half of natural gas production in the US Gulf as Hurricane Zeta approaches the southeast Louisiana coast.

US-listed chem stocks decline as Dow Jones falls 2.29%
US-listed shares of chemical companies fell on Monday as the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell sharply amid worries about a surge in coronavirus cases.

Westlake lifts force majeure on US styrene
Westlake has lifted a force majeure on styrene after its 260,000 tonne/year US Lake Charles, Louisiana, styrene plant resumed operations October 25.