Powering the Permian – How the U.S. dock worker’s strike could affect the Permian Basin

PERMIAN BASIN, Texas – (KMID/KPEJ) – October 2 marks day two of the dock workers strike, stretching from Maine to right here in Texas. This strike is said to affect 50% of all U.S. imports including furniture, clothes, food products, and even the oil and gas industry.
ABC Big 2’s Chris Talley spoke with a local oil and gas expert to see how this strike will impact the Permian Basin.

“Oil field-wise we should be okay, to start out with but there could be massive shortages ahead and we can’t handle that,” explained Kirk Edwards, President of Latigo Petroleum.

From the East Coast to the Gulf Coast, Tuesday morning nearly 50,000 dock workers walked off the job, demanding higher wages and protection from A.I.
Edwards said his concerns are running low on materials, especially steel.

“The strikes are all on the East Coast, but they do affect Houston, which is going to be a huge major place for oil field equipment, pipes, pipe-fitting – a lot of things that come in from overseas,” explained Edwards.

The Latigo Petroleum President said oil and gas companies shouldn’t be worried so soon, but if the strike lasts long term, there could be some implications.

“We’re going to be in good shape, but the drilling rig count, the frack crews [could be affected]. These guys cannot drill if they don’t have the pipe fittings material to put a well together,” said Edwards.

When it comes to needs at the grocery store, H-E-B released this statement:

“At H-E-B, we regularly prepare for potential supply chain situations. We do not anticipate any customer impact from the port strike at this time. Our team has been working with suppliers for weeks to serve Texans. Most products are not impacted by this strike. our stores are receiving shipments and are in a strong position that allows our Partners to continue to restock shelves throughout the day.”

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