Sept. 27 (Bloomberg) -- Gasoline rose for a second day in New York on concern that refineries damaged by Hurricane Rita may be shut longer than expected, straining U.S. fuel supplies.

Valero Energy Corp., the nation's largest refiner, said its Port Arthur, Texas, plant may be closed for as long as four weeks. Six other refineries in the area Rita made landfall may stay closed because of a lack of power and damage from winds or flooding. Oil production in the Gulf of Mexico was completely shut after Hurricane Rita swept through the area on Sept. 24.

``The early relief that Rita passed most facilities by was overdone,'' said Tony Regan, director and lead consultant at Tri- Zen International Pte in Singapore. Prices are ``going to remain strong for the next few days until we get some reliable information on how the refineries and offshore production are recovering.''

Gasoline for October delivery rose as much as 3.59 cents, or 1.7 percent, to $2.1651 a gallon in electronic trading. It was at $2.1605 at 11:23 a.m. Singapore time.

Yesterday, prices rose 2.1 percent to $2.1292. They reached $2.92 a gallon on Aug. 31, the highest since trading began in 1984. Futures are 60 percent higher than a year ago.

Prices began rising yesterday after President George W. Bush said it was unknown how much damage was sustained to the refining areas directly hit by Rita.

``We don't know yet about 1.7 million barrels a day that were located right in the path of Rita,'' Bush said in comments after a briefing at the U.S. Energy Department.

Pump Prices

At the pump, the average U.S. retail gasoline price on Sept. 25 rose 5.2 cents to $2.80 a gallon, according to the AAA motorists' group. It reached a record $3.057 on Sept. 2, the week Katrina struck.

Crude oil for November delivery was unchanged at $65.82 at 12:01 p.m. Singapore time. Earlier the contract rose as much as 35 cents, or 0.5 percent, to $66.17 a barrel in electronic after- hours trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices are 33 percent higher than a year ago.

Yesterday, the contract rose 2.5 percent to $65.82. Futures have fallen 7 percent since setting a record $70.85 on Aug. 30, the day after Hurricane Katrina made landfall.

Higher gasoline prices make it more profitable for refiners worldwide to process crude oil into fuel, increasing demand for the raw material.

Texas, Louisiana

Fourteen refineries in Texas and Louisiana shut down by Rita remained closed, the Energy Department said yesterday. They produce about 3.5 million barrels of day of fuel, or about 20 percent of the U.S. total.

That includes seven refineries in the Port Arthur, Beaumont and Lake Charles area on the Texas-Louisiana border, where Rita made landfall. They have a combined output of 1.77 million barrels a day, or about 10 percent of U.S. capacity.

Four plants, accounting for about 5 percent of U.S. refining capacity, remain closed because of damage caused by Katrina last month. They are scheduled to resume output in November or December at the earliest.

Oil production in the Gulf, which accounts for about 30 percent of U.S. output, remained completely shut because of Rita and Katrina, the U.S. Minerals Management Service said yesterday at 3 p.m. New York time yesterday, while natural gas output was at 22 percent of normal capacity.

Typhoon

Chevron Corp. said its Typhoon platform in the Gulf was ``severely'' damaged after Rita. The platform, which accounts for 3 percent of the company's Gulf production, was severed from its mooring and is being secured, the San Ramon, California-based company said in a statement yesterday.

``These reports about Chevron's platform and the missing rigs are a bit of a worry,'' said David Thurtell, a commodity strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia in Sydney. ``The peak hurricane season is mid- to late-October so it's not over yet.''

Rita became a Category 5 hurricane on the five-tier Saffir- Simpson scale, with winds of more than 155 mph, as it swept over oil and gas production facilities before coming ashore.

Bush said yesterday the U.S. will provide oil from the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve, a move first made after Katrina crimped supplies.

``There's been a disruption of supply and we want to be sure to do everything we can to help with supply,'' Bush said. ``These storms showed us we need additional capacity, additional refining capacity for example, to meet the needs of the American people.''

Marathon Oil

The last refinery built in the U.S. was a Marathon Oil Corp. plant in Garyville, Louisiana, that opened in 1976.

Exxon Mobil Corp., the world's largest publicly traded oil company, said it has resumed delivering gasoline from its Baytown refinery. Initial assessments of the Beaumont refinery and chemical-plant operations don't show any significant damage, Exxon said.

Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Europe's second-biggest oil company, said it found ``only minor damage'' at its Deer Park refinery and chemical plant near Houston.

The Nymex and International Petroleum Exchange in London offered weekend trading Sunday because of Rita. Both exchanges incorporated Sunday's trades as part of Monday's session.

To contact the reporters on this story: Will Kennedy in Singapore at wkennedy3@bloomberg.net;

Last Updated: September 27, 2005 01:49 EDT