U.S. refineries ran at 96.8% of operable capacity for the week ending September 11, 2026, down 1.0 percentage point from the prior week, according to weekly data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The current reading sits near the top of the EIA's historical record for the metric, which stretches back to 1990. The all-time high of 100.5% was set in August 1998, while the record low of 56.0% came in February 2021 during a period of severe winter storm disruptions.

Running near full capacity leaves refiners with little cushion to absorb unplanned outages, equipment failures or storm damage without a corresponding hit to fuel supply. Earlier in 2026, refiners deferred some spring maintenance to keep processing crude at elevated rates and capture strong margins, a pattern that has left less scheduled downtime banked for the fall turnaround season, when refiners typically take units offline for maintenance ahead of winter heating demand.

U.S. commercial crude oil stocks stood at 423.4 million barrels as refineries continued drawing down inventories to feed high run rates, while gasoline stocks, the largest product refineries produce, held at 207.7 million barrels. Utilization typically climbs heading into the summer driving season and again for winter heating season, with dips during the spring and fall maintenance windows. The elevated run rate has coincided with record retail diesel prices, as refiners work to keep pace with strong domestic and export demand for distillate fuel.

Source: The Vault Report - https://thevaultreport.com/oil/refinery-utilization