US Port-to-Port Shipments Soar with Jones Act Waiver

The relaxation of rules for ships traveling between US ports has led to a significant increase in petroleum shipments. The Jones Act, which requires commerce between US ports be conducted on US-flagged ships owned and crewed by US citizens, has been waived since March.

This waiver has resulted in a quadrupling of petroleum shipments from the Gulf Coast to the West Coast, from 30,000 to 190,000 barrels per day. Shipment from the Gulf Coast to the East Coast have also set a new record, reaching 1.2 million barrels per day, which is 11% higher than the previous record.

The Energy Information Administration reports that the average price of oil has risen from $82 a barrel in March to over $108 in May, before dropping back to around $85 by Monday.