Hurricane Ida has finished barreling through the critical Louisiana grain export infrastructure and the question is what will be the impact? First, while Ida is a force of nature, the geographic area of the storm was much smaller than Katrina, meaning a smaller storm surge from Ida. Moreover, much of the damage from Katrina was due to failures in infrastructure (especially levees) that subsequently received investment. While Katrina was devastating to New Orleans, it was less damaging to U.S. agriculture and exports. From a risk standpoint, the southern coast and port area hit by Ida represents a quarter of the U.S. oil supply, over 40 percent of oil refining and over 60 percent of the export movement of grain from the Midwest. It is the l...
From WPI Consulting
Weighing in on strategic realignment
WPI’s team was retained by the governing board of a U.S. industry organization to review a decision, reached by vote, to invest significant assets into the development and management of an export trading company. WPI’s team conducted a formal review of this decision and concluded that the current level of market saturation would limit the benefits of the investment. Based on WPI’s analysis and recommended actions, the board subsequently reversed its decision and undertook a strategic planning effort to identify more impactful investments. On behalf of numerous clients, WPI has not only assisted in identifying strategic paths but also advised their implementation.