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Tilted Cat Head
Administrator
Location: Manhattan, NY
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Quote:
Originally posted by kutulu
There are enough refineries to process all the gas we need. There is no actual shortage going on. If there was, we'd have trouble getting gas. When was the last time you went to the gas station and they didn't have gas?
Another problem is all the different blends of gas. Sometimes 1 county uses different gas than the rest of the state, which in turn uses different gas then 3 other states. The epa needs to decide on one clear blend and stick with it.
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sorry. no I don't believe it.
All the tree huggers said no more refineries, no more storage tanks.
so there's no place to stockpile gas for the consumer.
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/htm...comment30.html
Quote:
Nation's thirst for gas reaching the limit
By Michael D. Tusiani
Special to The Washington Post
Higher prices show that our insatiable demand for gasoline is catching up with our willingness to produce it.
The price of gasoline rose over the winter, but that was just the beginning of an inevitable upward trend. Summer will give us an even better feel for things to come. Complaints by motorists and accusations by politicians will not avoid the unavoidable: Most Americans simply cannot have all the gasoline they want much longer.
We already burn more of this precious but cheap commodity than U.S. refineries can make. For the past two years, imports climbing toward 1 million barrels per day have kept supply in step with consumption. But within three years, we'll be extracting as much from foreign suppliers as they can spare. At that point, demand cannot continue to grow at the current pace. It cannot exceed supply.
When demand hits the ceiling, some of us, or all of us, will use less. Government may impose a rationing scheme (which seems unlikely) or price will allocate supply. Those who can afford it will get as much as they want. Others will not.
For some reason, America's politicians and special-interest groups never mention the limits of oil companies' capacity for making gasoline. The domestic refining industry has not grown significantly for years, and it will probably shrink in years to come. Plant emissions rules, community hostility and a series of money-wasting betrayals by regulators discourage expansion. So does the burden of paying for equipment to make fuels that comply with clean-air rules for a marketplace so competitive that investments do not earn any money. Worse yet, these conditions encourage closure of marginal facilities. Many consumers say they won't cry for the big, rich oil companies. If so, they'll cry for themselves in the gasoline line — or leave the keys in their SUVs, hoping they'll be stolen.
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that's why the costs FLUCTUATES based on the demands put upon it during high usage times like summer.
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