Oil prices fell more than $1 a barrel on Sunday after Houston refineries escaped damage from Hurricane Rita, although plants further east in Port Arthur and Lake Charles were hit harder.
US crude, open for a special Sunday session, was down $1.28 at $62.91 a barrel by 1620 GMT. US gasoline dropped nearly 9 cents to just under $2 a gallon and London Brent crude lost $1.14 to $61.30 a barrel.
An assurance from International Energy Agency, coordinator for the release of emergency stocks among 26 industrialised nations, that it would consider filling a supply disruption also helped undermine prices.
Texas Governor Rick Perry said his state''s refineries should be back soon.
"It appears the refining industry, the oil and gas industry (sustained) a glancing blow at worst. Hopefully, they''ll be back in production very soon," Perry said on Sunday.
"It looks like there will be some delays in getting some refining backup but it doesn''t look too bad," said Gary Ross, chief executive of Consultancy PIRA Energy.
"The US gasoline market will remain somewhat tight but there''s no doubt that US demand has been hurt by the high retail prices after Katrina."
As company damage reports rolled in, there was damage reported at at least one of the three refineries in Port Arthur, east of Houston. Damage also was likely at the two refineries in Lake Charles, Louisiana, where 15-foot storm surges were recorded but there was no immediate assessment from their operators.
"The extent of flooding from Lake Charles isn''t clear yet," said Ross.
Valero Energy Corp said it sustained "significant damage" at its 250,000 barrel a day Port Arthur refinery and said a restart could take two weeks to a month.
Royal Dutch Shell and Total have yet to give restart times for their refineries in the same city.
Many of other US Gulf refineries appeared to have escaped unscathed and indications were that some with power around Houston were in start-up mode.
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