Exxon’s 11 Million-Gallon Refinery Goes Dark. How High Can Midwest Gas Prices Go?

Gasoline and diesel prices were already moving higher before a floodwater-overwhelmed pump forced Exxon Mobil (NYSE:XOM | XOM Price Prediction) to keep its Joliet, Ill., refinery offline.

Authoritative Financial News · Since 2006 AI Investor Podcast Menu ❚❚ At close S&P 500 7,812.60 −0.05% Dow Jones 51,752.80 −0.30% Nasdaq 100 30,571.20 −0.39% Russell 2000 2,788.17 −0.38% S&P 500 7,812.60 −0.05% Dow Jones 51,752.80 −0.30% Nasdaq 100 30,571.20 −0.39% Russell 2000 2,788.17 −0.38% S&P 500 7,812.60 −0.05% Dow Jones 51,752.80 −0.30% Nasdaq 100 30,571.20 −0.39% Russell 2000 2,788.17 −0.38% S&P 500 7,812.60 −0.05% Dow Jones 51,752.80 −0.30% Nasdaq 100 30,571.20 −0.39% Russell 2000 2,788.17 −0.38% S&P 500 7,812.60 −0.05% Dow Jones 51,752.80 −0.30% Nasdaq 100 30,571.20 −0.39% Russell 2000 2,788.17 −0.38% S&P 500 7,812.60 −0.05% Dow Jones 51,752.80 −0.30% Nasdaq 100 30,571.20 −0.39% Russell 2000 2,788.17 −0.38% Investing Exxon’s 11 Million-Gallon Refinery Goes Dark.

A flooded pump has knocked one of the Midwest's biggest refineries offline at the worst possible moment, and fuel markets from Chicago to Pittsburgh are already stretched thin.

The question now is how long Exxon can stay dark before prices… ⧉ Quick Read Exxon's Joliet refinery produces 11 million gallons of fuel daily and covers 6% of Midwest capacity, with no restart date set after flooding.

Illinois diesel already sits at $6.50 a gallon and Chicago gasoline at $5.14, leaving consumers little buffer if the outage extends into weeks.

A prolonged shutdown could push parts of the Midwest above $6 gasoline while widening refining margins for Exxon and other operating refiners.

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A flooded pump has knocked one of the Midwest's biggest refineries offline at the worst possible moment, and fuel markets from Chicago to Pittsburgh are already stretched thin.

The question now is how long Exxon can stay dark before prices… ⧉ Quick Read Exxon's Joliet refinery produces 11 million gallons of fuel daily and covers 6% of Midwest capacity, with no restart date set after flooding.

Illinois diesel already sits at $6.50 a gallon and Chicago gasoline at $5.14, leaving consumers little buffer if the outage extends into weeks.

A prolonged shutdown could push parts of the Midwest above $6 gasoline while widening refining margins for Exxon and other operating refiners.

Gasoline and diesel prices were already moving higher before a floodwater-overwhelmed pump forced Exxon Mobil ( NYSE:XOM | XOM Price Prediction ) to keep its Joliet, Ill., refinery offline.

This is critical because fuel markets have little room for another supply disruption.

AAA put the national average for regular gasoline at $4.47 a gallon today, while Illinois averaged $4.86 and diesel reached $6.50 .

Meanwhile, both Brent crude and West Texas Intermediate remain above $100 a barrel as geopolitical disruptions squeeze global fuel supplies.

The Joliet refinery initially shut down around 3:30 p.m.

13 after severe weather damaged Exelon ‘s ( NYSE:EXC ) ComEd primary and secondary power lines feeding the facility.

Electricity was restored around 7 p.m., but the refinery did not simply flip a switch and restart.

The outage automatically triggered safety systems and flaring as the refinery burned off excess pressure.

Then came the more troublesome development: floodwater overwhelmed a pump, forcing Exxon to deploy a containment boom and continue cleanup and stabilization work.

Exxon has not said whether the pump problem was directly caused by the initial power failure.