Bloomberg reported that the highest summer temperatures in some areas of Europe are threatening the normal operations of refineries.
Temperatures in Greece could reach up to 40 degrees Celsius next week, which will make normal operations of refineries difficult.
In Poland, the hot weather is also endangering the normal operations of refineries.
Alan Gelder - Vice President of refining, chemicals, and oil markets at consultancy Wood Mackenzie - told Bloomberg: “European refineries were designed in the 60s and 70s. The world has become hotter since then.”
Bloomberg suggests that these risks are due to climate change but also notes that refineries bear some responsibility for their own issues, based on attributing climate change to human use of hydrocarbons.
Bloomberg cited a British engineering company stating that refineries are adapting to the changing situation but not all are able to do so because European refineries are often designed to operate stably at sub-zero temperatures.
Therefore, due to high temperatures, some refineries will need to limit production to avoid equipment failures and other issues that high temperatures can cause.
Some refineries may be forced to cut processing rates by 15% for a 24-hour period at some point this summer. This number may not sound like much, but the impact of that potential will depend on the demand for oil and gas.
Bloomberg added that refineries in the U.S. are also facing summer heat, with those along the East Coast and Midwest being the most vulnerable to disruptions in normal operations due to heat. The reason is similar to the issue of European refineries: they were built to withstand winter cold, not summer heat.
