Ken (A.K.A. Big Shasta):
Jon_Cocktoastel:
Most of this crap is caused by the EPA demanding special blends in different areas
and IKE,
& our lack of refining capacity is criminally stupid
+1....Built a freakin refinery already. There's plenty of space in this country of ours, it doesn't have to be in anyones "backyard"
Good luck on that permitting process.
You sound like a bunch of liberals attempting to regulate and force private industry to do something. Why should the oil industry build more refineries? Doing so would only
...increase their ability to provide a steady supply of fuel to consumers - even during hurricane season,
...reduce supply disruptions and price spikes,
...reduce their profits due to excess production capacity.
Ha - don't hold your breath! They will only do something when it's in their best interests (read: taxpayer subsidy, tax breaks, special legislation to benefit them, looser environmental regulations, etc.). Companies are supposed to make as much money as possible.
This is from that left-wing liberal rag "The Christian Science Monitor" (Sep-2005)
...The current refinery squeeze has been building for years. For the past two decades, deregulation and low profits have combined to push the industry into consolidation. Partly because of environmental regulations, it was cheaper to expand existing refineries than to build new ones. In 1981, the US had 324 refineries with a total capacity of 18.6 million barrels per day, the Department of Energy reports. Today, there are just 132 oil refineries with a capacity of 16.8 million b.p.d., according to Oil and Gas Journal, a trade publication...
FYI: For at least the last month the EPA has suspended all the fuel requirements in the southeast to ease fuel supply disruptions due to all the storm damage. I'm sure the refineries are in no rush to get that production capacity back online too soon, or build spare capacity into their infrastructure to make sure this doesn't happen again. Tight supply is best for profits.