Gasoline prices are up in California:
Experts attributed the rise in local prices to recent trouble at a handful of California oil refineries. PBF Energy refineries in Torrance and Martinez as well as a Valero refinery in Benicia outside San Francisco have experienced problems in recent weeks that caused a hit to gasoline production, driving prices up, said Patrick De Haan, head analyst at GasBuddy.
What bad luck! Refinery shutdowns just as California enters the spring driving season. Who could have predicted that such a thing would happen?
Nothing we can do about it, I guess. But I sure wish the refinery shutdown fairies would go bother some other state for a few decades.
Shocked. Shocked I tell you!!!
_______
To be real, it's not like they do this on purpose.
😉
What makes you so sure?
LOL. My wife complains about this all the time. She is totally convinced that these shutdowns are a racket.
Because they are. You married a smart woman.
The shutdown fairies require payment in the form of accepting the same blends as neighboring states.
What neighboring state has a refinery?
First, I wrote accept the same blends. Didn’t say where those blends were produced. That aside, some web searches suggest there are refineries in Nevada and Oregon.
And Richmond CA (right next to Benicia and Martinez) just went on strike, so add that to it. For what it is worth, a friend is a union crane operator and works almost exclusively at refineries and he has said that the hard core safety procedures (necessary and rigid) can really shut down entire opps for a couple of weeks and early spring after rains are best for retrofits and replacement
I was also wondering if there was a grain of truth in what they say - and was wondering if it had to do with when the best time to do regular maintenance was.
but it never rains in California...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gmq4WIjQxp0
I'm assuming there's some kind of massive, unprecedented re-tuning of the chemical processes that they have to do twice a year (so NOBODY could have predicted it!) when differing quantities of that good ol' Kansas ethanol (thanks, Senator Dole) have to be blended in.
Although, just incidentally and fortuitously, it allows for extra profits. Who could have imagined it?
And oddly, none of these problems have created any shortages at gas stations.
Kevin, get an electric car. The world is burning. Gas should really cost $8 per gallon at least to have the funds to decarbonize and remove lead from poor neighborhoods the highways destroyed.