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But yet every spring/fall fuel prices go up while the refineries switch over to the summer/winter blends. Seems like poor planning on their part. Why not stagger the change-over so as to not cause a disruption to the consumer? And heaven forbid a hurricane hits the Gulf and shuts down a few of them; prices are guaranteed to spike for weeks.
No one is going to build a refinery that is not going to operate at close to full capacity all its like.
Oil doesn’t come from oil refineries. Building more oil refineries won’t create more oil.
Refining is a major logjam in the production of gasoline, and other oil based energy products. We have massive amount of domestic U.S. oil. Oil supply is not the problem, but refining capacity is often the problem especially if there are hurricanes in the Gulf that damage refineries.
Quote:
Even as U.S. oil production continues to grow, the nation's refining capacity is barely budging, the research firm Morningstar said Monday.
Refinery capacity in 2017 was 18.6 million barrels per day, virtually the same as the previous year, even as crude production continues to set records, hitting 10.5 million barrels per day in April.
Even with capacity holding steady, refineries are running near full speed
We do need more refining capacity to create more supply of gasoline, and to ensure reliability, and pricing stability.
Refining is a major logjam in the production of gasoline, and other oil based energy products. We have massive amount of domestic U.S. oil. Oil supply is not the problem, but refining capacity is often the problem especially if there are hurricanes in the Gulf that damage refineries.
We do need more refining capacity to create more supply of gasoline, and to ensure reliability, and pricing stability.
Sounds like some false logic....let me process this.
First, the reporting paper is in Texas - Houston.
Secondly, a reason given is that we have too much supply....well, that's the time to cut back on the pumping and develop, not to pump more and more that we don't need. Whatever happened to saving some for future generations??
If a major event happens and we all have to pay 50 cents more a gallon for a month or two....well, that's no big deal at all. If you want, buy some oil futures to offset it. Or, but a car that gets 50 MPG.
Just as a "test", if we find and pump 3X as much oil as we are doing now, should we just continue to pump it and build more refineries.....and pollute more...and then ship that all to other countries since we don't need it?
Or, should we cut back production to save some (national security and all?) for later.
I think we have something like 36 straight years worth of oil for the US only that could be used.
I’m pretty sure we have more reserves than any other country
I'm pretty sure we don't, not recoverable reserves, anyway. The U.S. has an enormous resource base which represents mostly resources (e.g., Green River oil shale) that are not economically recoverable now and may never be.
This article says we're Number 11, with about 35 billion bbls of recoverable reserves, according to the EIA.
That is 1/10th of the recoverable reserves of Venezuela, with roughly 300 billion barrels of recoverable reserves.
And the department of energy has an emergency 700 million barrels stored in Louisiana and Texas
Which:
is an emergency stockpile, intended primarily for government use
is laced with salt (because it is stored in cavities in salt domes), making it difficult to refine
is not a a whole lot of oil in any event. It isn't included in recoverable reserve figures because it's already been found and produced. It's a relatively small amount of oil set aside and stored for national emergencies.
And the department of energy has an emergency 700 million barrels stored in Louisiana and Texas
We have less than that, but not too much less -- Congress and Presidents sell off some of the Strategic Reserves from time to time to fund their other priorities. US Law says we must maintain at least a 90 day reserve and it stands now at 140 days. Obama sold it off several times (Libya War & twice for the Treasury), Trump sold off some when Hurricane Harvey hit. Sell offs almost never makes the news.
Louisiana and Texas are in the same Pad District and account for more than half of all refining of petroleum in the USA. Strategic reserves are in the same districts and anyone who wants to dismiss Petroleum News because it is from Houston is totally clueless. It's basically the Oil Capital of the World.
I'm pretty sure we don't, not recoverable reserves, anyway. The U.S. has an enormous resource base which represents mostly resources (e.g., Green River oil shale) that are not economically recoverable now and may never be.
This article says we're Number 11, with about 35 billion bbls of recoverable reserves, according to the EIA.
That is 1/10th of the recoverable reserves of Venezuela, with roughly 300 billion barrels of recoverable reserves.
is an emergency stockpile, intended primarily for government use
is laced with salt (because it is stored in cavities in salt domes), making it difficult to refine
is not a a whole lot of oil in any event. It isn't included in recoverable reserve figures because it's already been found and produced. It's a relatively small amount of oil set aside and stored for national emergencies.
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