Oil Companies Report Record Profits -- $1,500 Per Second

[boedicca]

It's so amusing to see leftwing loons complain about the profits an oil company makes by risking its own capital when they give the Clintons a pass for selling infuence at the taxpayers' expense.

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

Ass ******* Big Oil Refining companies are ******* the mid-west USA hard. Today's $42 oil means refiners cost is $1 a gallon to make gasoline, yet they wholesale it at $1.83 Then they close down a refinery in Indiana & drive the pump price over $3 a gallon. 15 years ago $42 oil = $1.25 at the pump. Today we get ass-raped for over $3 starting the car.

EPA boutique blends guarantee that a single refinery can have such a big impact on local prices.

That is a big ass ridiculous lie that you slurped up like a good little idiot. Stop regurgitating lies & deal with reality.

Most of the PADD-2 region is being ass-raped. Only a few cities there have EPA boutique blends requirements & they can be waived.

The Midwest doesn't have a different blend? Seriously?


Summer gas has to be nine psi throughout the nation. But in big cities prone to severe smog problems, it has to be lower than that: cities like Chicago are required to be below 7.8 psi, as well as southern states, though winter-grade fuel can be sold during the summer in case of emergencies, like refinery explosions or hurricanes. By virtue of living in big cities, then, residents have to use more refined, more expensive fuel during the summer.

It gets more complicated still. States, cities, and counties can set their own regulations. Throughout most of Illinois, the max summer psi is nine. But in Madison, Monroe, and St. Clair counties, the max psi falls to 7.2 psi between June and September 15th. The same is true in Indiana, where the max psi is nine save for Clark and Floyd Counties, where it drops to 7.8 from May through September 15th; most states have exceptional counties or cities like this.

Which brings us to Chicago. Like most of the East Coast metro corridor, much of southern and central California, and a handful of other places, Chicago is an “RFG” area, as is Milwaukee:

The 1990 amendments to the federal Clean Air Act required that “reformulated gasoline” be used in nine geographic areas with the worst smog pollution, to reduce harmful levels of ozone in air. At that time, reformulated gasoline (RFG) had to contain two percent oxygen by weight. Refiners met the oxygen requirement by adding ethers or alcohols that contain oxygen to gasoline. The two most commonly used additives were MTBE (methyl tertiary butyl ether, which was used in about 87 percent of RFG) and ethanol (which has been used primarily in the Midwest where it is produced from corn).

It’s not just that Chicago is one of the few metro regions using reformulated gasoline (or oxygenated gas, if that helps distinguish it). It’s also that different metro areas use different blends of gas. Chicago, being so close to the corn belt, uses lots and lots of ethanol, unlike any other city:

Chicago doesn’t use just any reformulated gas. It requires a unique blend of summer gasoline made at relatively few refineries. The blend is special because its recipe calls for heavy use of corn-based ethanol — politicians who made the rules wanted to support corn farmers, experts say. Illinois is the nation’s No. 2 grower of corn.

The blend is used in a relatively small region, essentially a contiguous strip of counties from Chicago to Milwaukee. In fact, the blend has a descriptive name, called the “Chicago/Milwaukee RFG with Ethanol,” with RFG standing for reformulated gasoline.

Nobody else in America uses this blend of summertime gas, even in Illinois. The only other area that does is near St. Louis, and that’s a different concoction based on summer-gas formulation rules for Southern cities, while Chicago’s formula is based on federal rules for a Northern city.

As a result, most of the Chicago blend comes from just a few refineries near Chicago. They include a BP refinery in Whiting, Ind., an Exxon Mobil plant near Joliet and a Citgo plant near Lemont.

In 2001, John Cook, then the head of the petroleum division of the Department of Energy, called Chicago/Milwaukee an “island,” along with California; you may recall that, over the years, Chicago often competes with different California cities for some of the nation’s highest gas prices:

The result of this targeted approach to air quality has been to create gasoline market islands. The primary examples are California and the Chicago/Milwaukee areas, in which the required gasolines are unique, and only a limited number of refineries make the products. The inventories of gasoline used in these regions can be drawn down rapidly in response to unusually high demand or a supply problem at one of the few refineries producing the specialized products, or in one of the pipelines delivering the products. Prices for gasoline in these regions then surge. If other gasoline markets are not tight, the prices surges may be limited to the specialized gasoline regions, as we have seen historically in the case of California.


Why Gas Is So Expensive During the Summer And Especially in Chicago Chicago magazine The 312 March 2012

Were you a moron before you started huffing gas? LOL!

 

[M14 Shooter]

Big oil and the cons are ******* America so hard, your turds should just fall out of your ass. The GOP defends the greed of big oil, which is sabotaging the economy. More proof that the cons are the American Al Qaeda.
Oil Companies Report Record Profits -- $1,500 Per Second | U.S. News Best Cars
Actually, that's what big oil profits were in 2008. This year they're making $14,000.00 per second.

You hate the oil cimpanies, and yet you love everything that oil brings you.
Sounds like the problem here, if any, lies with you and your status as a useful idiot.

 

[KissMy]

Ass ******* Big Oil Refining companies are ******* the mid-west USA hard. Today's $42 oil means refiners cost is $1 a gallon to make gasoline, yet they wholesale it at $1.83 Then they close down a refinery in Indiana & drive the pump price over $3 a gallon. 15 years ago $42 oil = $1.25 at the pump. Today we get ass-raped for over $3 starting the car.

EPA boutique blends guarantee that a single refinery can have such a big impact on local prices.

That is a big ass ridiculous lie that you slurped up like a good little idiot. Stop regurgitating lies & deal with reality.

Most of the PADD-2 region is being ass-raped. Only a few cities there have EPA boutique blends requirements & they can be waived.

The Midwest doesn't have a different blend? Seriously?


Summer gas has to be nine psi throughout the nation. But in big cities prone to severe smog problems, it has to be lower than that: cities like Chicago are required to be below 7.8 psi, as well as southern states, though winter-grade fuel can be sold during the summer in case of emergencies, like refinery explosions or hurricanes. By virtue of living in big cities, then, residents have to use more refined, more expensive fuel during the summer.

It gets more complicated still. States, cities, and counties can set their own regulations. Throughout most of Illinois, the max summer psi is nine. But in Madison, Monroe, and St. Clair counties, the max psi falls to 7.2 psi between June and September 15th. The same is true in Indiana, where the max psi is nine save for Clark and Floyd Counties, where it drops to 7.8 from May through September 15th; most states have exceptional counties or cities like this.

Which brings us to Chicago. Like most of the East Coast metro corridor, much of southern and central California, and a handful of other places, Chicago is an “RFG” area, as is Milwaukee:

The 1990 amendments to the federal Clean Air Act required that “reformulated gasoline” be used in nine geographic areas with the worst smog pollution, to reduce harmful levels of ozone in air. At that time, reformulated gasoline (RFG) had to contain two percent oxygen by weight. Refiners met the oxygen requirement by adding ethers or alcohols that contain oxygen to gasoline. The two most commonly used additives were MTBE (methyl tertiary butyl ether, which was used in about 87 percent of RFG) and ethanol (which has been used primarily in the Midwest where it is produced from corn).

It’s not just that Chicago is one of the few metro regions using reformulated gasoline (or oxygenated gas, if that helps distinguish it). It’s also that different metro areas use different blends of gas. Chicago, being so close to the corn belt, uses lots and lots of ethanol, unlike any other city:

Chicago doesn’t use just any reformulated gas. It requires a unique blend of summer gasoline made at relatively few refineries. The blend is special because its recipe calls for heavy use of corn-based ethanol — politicians who made the rules wanted to support corn farmers, experts say. Illinois is the nation’s No. 2 grower of corn.

The blend is used in a relatively small region, essentially a contiguous strip of counties from Chicago to Milwaukee. In fact, the blend has a descriptive name, called the “Chicago/Milwaukee RFG with Ethanol,” with RFG standing for reformulated gasoline.

Nobody else in America uses this blend of summertime gas, even in Illinois. The only other area that does is near St. Louis, and that’s a different concoction based on summer-gas formulation rules for Southern cities, while Chicago’s formula is based on federal rules for a Northern city.

As a result, most of the Chicago blend comes from just a few refineries near Chicago. They include a BP refinery in Whiting, Ind., an Exxon Mobil plant near Joliet and a Citgo plant near Lemont.

In 2001, John Cook, then the head of the petroleum division of the Department of Energy, called Chicago/Milwaukee an “island,” along with California; you may recall that, over the years, Chicago often competes with different California cities for some of the nation’s highest gas prices:

The result of this targeted approach to air quality has been to create gasoline market islands. The primary examples are California and the Chicago/Milwaukee areas, in which the required gasolines are unique, and only a limited number of refineries make the products. The inventories of gasoline used in these regions can be drawn down rapidly in response to unusually high demand or a supply problem at one of the few refineries producing the specialized products, or in one of the pipelines delivering the products. Prices for gasoline in these regions then surge. If other gasoline markets are not tight, the prices surges may be limited to the specialized gasoline regions, as we have seen historically in the case of California.


Why Gas Is So Expensive During the Summer And Especially in Chicago Chicago magazine The 312 March 2012

Were you a moron before you started huffing gas? LOL!

Just more proof you're a clueless Moron. I told you before that boutique requirements are waived during unexpected refinery shutdowns. Your retarded full page verbage rant is meaningless in this situation & shows only a few metropolitan areas required boutiques prior to waivers. Oil companies are ass-raping for profit!!!

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

Ass ******* Big Oil Refining companies are ******* the mid-west USA hard. Today's $42 oil means refiners cost is $1 a gallon to make gasoline, yet they wholesale it at $1.83 Then they close down a refinery in Indiana & drive the pump price over $3 a gallon. 15 years ago $42 oil = $1.25 at the pump. Today we get ass-raped for over $3 starting the car.

EPA boutique blends guarantee that a single refinery can have such a big impact on local prices.

That is a big ass ridiculous lie that you slurped up like a good little idiot. Stop regurgitating lies & deal with reality.

Most of the PADD-2 region is being ass-raped. Only a few cities there have EPA boutique blends requirements & they can be waived.

The Midwest doesn't have a different blend? Seriously?


Summer gas has to be nine psi throughout the nation. But in big cities prone to severe smog problems, it has to be lower than that: cities like Chicago are required to be below 7.8 psi, as well as southern states, though winter-grade fuel can be sold during the summer in case of emergencies, like refinery explosions or hurricanes. By virtue of living in big cities, then, residents have to use more refined, more expensive fuel during the summer.

It gets more complicated still. States, cities, and counties can set their own regulations. Throughout most of Illinois, the max summer psi is nine. But in Madison, Monroe, and St. Clair counties, the max psi falls to 7.2 psi between June and September 15th. The same is true in Indiana, where the max psi is nine save for Clark and Floyd Counties, where it drops to 7.8 from May through September 15th; most states have exceptional counties or cities like this.

Which brings us to Chicago. Like most of the East Coast metro corridor, much of southern and central California, and a handful of other places, Chicago is an “RFG” area, as is Milwaukee:

The 1990 amendments to the federal Clean Air Act required that “reformulated gasoline” be used in nine geographic areas with the worst smog pollution, to reduce harmful levels of ozone in air. At that time, reformulated gasoline (RFG) had to contain two percent oxygen by weight. Refiners met the oxygen requirement by adding ethers or alcohols that contain oxygen to gasoline. The two most commonly used additives were MTBE (methyl tertiary butyl ether, which was used in about 87 percent of RFG) and ethanol (which has been used primarily in the Midwest where it is produced from corn).

It’s not just that Chicago is one of the few metro regions using reformulated gasoline (or oxygenated gas, if that helps distinguish it). It’s also that different metro areas use different blends of gas. Chicago, being so close to the corn belt, uses lots and lots of ethanol, unlike any other city:

Chicago doesn’t use just any reformulated gas. It requires a unique blend of summer gasoline made at relatively few refineries. The blend is special because its recipe calls for heavy use of corn-based ethanol — politicians who made the rules wanted to support corn farmers, experts say. Illinois is the nation’s No. 2 grower of corn.

The blend is used in a relatively small region, essentially a contiguous strip of counties from Chicago to Milwaukee. In fact, the blend has a descriptive name, called the “Chicago/Milwaukee RFG with Ethanol,” with RFG standing for reformulated gasoline.

Nobody else in America uses this blend of summertime gas, even in Illinois. The only other area that does is near St. Louis, and that’s a different concoction based on summer-gas formulation rules for Southern cities, while Chicago’s formula is based on federal rules for a Northern city.

As a result, most of the Chicago blend comes from just a few refineries near Chicago. They include a BP refinery in Whiting, Ind., an Exxon Mobil plant near Joliet and a Citgo plant near Lemont.

In 2001, John Cook, then the head of the petroleum division of the Department of Energy, called Chicago/Milwaukee an “island,” along with California; you may recall that, over the years, Chicago often competes with different California cities for some of the nation’s highest gas prices:

The result of this targeted approach to air quality has been to create gasoline market islands. The primary examples are California and the Chicago/Milwaukee areas, in which the required gasolines are unique, and only a limited number of refineries make the products. The inventories of gasoline used in these regions can be drawn down rapidly in response to unusually high demand or a supply problem at one of the few refineries producing the specialized products, or in one of the pipelines delivering the products. Prices for gasoline in these regions then surge. If other gasoline markets are not tight, the prices surges may be limited to the specialized gasoline regions, as we have seen historically in the case of California.


Why Gas Is So Expensive During the Summer And Especially in Chicago Chicago magazine The 312 March 2012

Were you a moron before you started huffing gas? LOL!

Just more proof you're a clueless Moron. I told you before that boutique requirements are waived during unexpected refinery shutdowns. Your retarded full page verbage rant is meaningless in this situation & shows only a few metropolitan areas required boutiques prior to waivers. Oil companies are ass-raping for profit!!!

Let me know when the requirement is waived. And go **** yourself, moron.

 

[LogikAndReazon]

Big oil needs to be nationalized.
For the people !!!!!!!! Lmfao

 

[KissMy]

Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen issued the following statement in response to the shutdown of the BP 240,000-barrels-per-day refinery in Whiting, Indiana, which has caused gasoline prices to spike in Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Missouri, and Wisconsin, and could cause prices to increase in other Midwest states.

“The Whiting refinery outage demonstrates, once again, the folly of relying too heavily on one source of motor fuel. It’s worth noting that the refinery represents just 6 percent of the Midwest region’s refining capacity (and just 1 percent of national refining capacity); yet retail gas prices in some Midwest markets have spiked by 60 cents per gallon or more. This is exactly why we need to further diversify our nation’s fuel supply and allow more renewable fuels by removing arcane barriers erected by the oil companies and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Using more low-cost ethanol would absolutely help insulate consumers from these kinds of price shocks.

“All of the lost gasoline output (roughly 120,000 bbls/day) resulting from this outage could be offset if all gasoline in the Midwest region immediately transitioned from E10 to E15. Moreover, ethanol in the Chicago wholesale market is roughly $1 per gallon lower than gasoline today. That means if refiners and blend more ethanol the price will fall.

 

[theHawk]

Big oil and the cons are ******* America so hard, your turds should just fall out of your ass. The GOP defends the greed of big oil, which is sabotaging the economy. More proof that the cons are the American Al Qaeda.

Oil Companies Report Record Profits -- $1,500 Per Second | U.S. News Best Cars

Actually, that's what big oil profits were in 2008. This year they're making $14,000.00 per second.

You're free to boycott their products, so what are you complaining about?

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen issued the following statement in response to the shutdown of the BP 240,000-barrels-per-day refinery in Whiting, Indiana, which has caused gasoline prices to spike in Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Missouri, and Wisconsin, and could cause prices to increase in other Midwest states.

“The Whiting refinery outage demonstrates, once again, the folly of relying too heavily on one source of motor fuel. It’s worth noting that the refinery represents just 6 percent of the Midwest region’s refining capacity (and just 1 percent of national refining capacity); yet retail gas prices in some Midwest markets have spiked by 60 cents per gallon or more. This is exactly why we need to further diversify our nation’s fuel supply and allow more renewable fuels by removing arcane barriers erected by the oil companies and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Using more low-cost ethanol would absolutely help insulate consumers from these kinds of price shocks.

“All of the lost gasoline output (roughly 120,000 bbls/day) resulting from this outage could be offset if all gasoline in the Midwest region immediately transitioned from E10 to E15. Moreover, ethanol in the Chicago wholesale market is roughly $1 per gallon lower than gasoline today. That means if refiners and blend more ethanol the price will fall.

Excellent idea! Lower energy, corrosive ethanol should be 20%, no, 50% of all our motor fuel.
Yeah, that's the ticket!

 

[KissMy]

Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen issued the following statement in response to the shutdown of the BP 240,000-barrels-per-day refinery in Whiting, Indiana, which has caused gasoline prices to spike in Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Missouri, and Wisconsin, and could cause prices to increase in other Midwest states.

“The Whiting refinery outage demonstrates, once again, the folly of relying too heavily on one source of motor fuel. It’s worth noting that the refinery represents just 6 percent of the Midwest region’s refining capacity (and just 1 percent of national refining capacity); yet retail gas prices in some Midwest markets have spiked by 60 cents per gallon or more. This is exactly why we need to further diversify our nation’s fuel supply and allow more renewable fuels by removing arcane barriers erected by the oil companies and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Using more low-cost ethanol would absolutely help insulate consumers from these kinds of price shocks.

“All of the lost gasoline output (roughly 120,000 bbls/day) resulting from this outage could be offset if all gasoline in the Midwest region immediately transitioned from E10 to E15. Moreover, ethanol in the Chicago wholesale market is roughly $1 per gallon lower than gasoline today. That means if refiners and blend more ethanol the price will fall.

Excellent idea! Lower energy, corrosive ethanol should be 20%, no, 50% of all our motor fuel.
Yeah, that's the ticket!

I ran E85 in my 20 vehicle fleet for ~20 years now & never had a fuel issue. We could easily replace 25% of national gasoline with Ethanol.

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen issued the following statement in response to the shutdown of the BP 240,000-barrels-per-day refinery in Whiting, Indiana, which has caused gasoline prices to spike in Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Missouri, and Wisconsin, and could cause prices to increase in other Midwest states.

“The Whiting refinery outage demonstrates, once again, the folly of relying too heavily on one source of motor fuel. It’s worth noting that the refinery represents just 6 percent of the Midwest region’s refining capacity (and just 1 percent of national refining capacity); yet retail gas prices in some Midwest markets have spiked by 60 cents per gallon or more. This is exactly why we need to further diversify our nation’s fuel supply and allow more renewable fuels by removing arcane barriers erected by the oil companies and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Using more low-cost ethanol would absolutely help insulate consumers from these kinds of price shocks.

“All of the lost gasoline output (roughly 120,000 bbls/day) resulting from this outage could be offset if all gasoline in the Midwest region immediately transitioned from E10 to E15. Moreover, ethanol in the Chicago wholesale market is roughly $1 per gallon lower than gasoline today. That means if refiners and blend more ethanol the price will fall.

Excellent idea! Lower energy, corrosive ethanol should be 20%, no, 50% of all our motor fuel.
Yeah, that's the ticket!

I ran E85 in my 20 vehicle fleet for ~20 years now & never had a fuel issue. We could easily replace 25% of national gasoline with Ethanol.

Why would we want to do that?

 

[Mr. H.]

Renewable Fuels Association President and CEO Bob Dinneen issued the following statement in response to the shutdown of the BP 240,000-barrels-per-day refinery in Whiting, Indiana, which has caused gasoline prices to spike in Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Missouri, and Wisconsin, and could cause prices to increase in other Midwest states.

“The Whiting refinery outage demonstrates, once again, the folly of relying too heavily on one source of motor fuel. It’s worth noting that the refinery represents just 6 percent of the Midwest region’s refining capacity (and just 1 percent of national refining capacity); yet retail gas prices in some Midwest markets have spiked by 60 cents per gallon or more. This is exactly why we need to further diversify our nation’s fuel supply and allow more renewable fuels by removing arcane barriers erected by the oil companies and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Using more low-cost ethanol would absolutely help insulate consumers from these kinds of price shocks.

“All of the lost gasoline output (roughly 120,000 bbls/day) resulting from this outage could be offset if all gasoline in the Midwest region immediately transitioned from E10 to E15. Moreover, ethanol in the Chicago wholesale market is roughly $1 per gallon lower than gasoline today. That means if refiners and blend more ethanol the price will fall.

Excellent idea! Lower energy, corrosive ethanol should be 20%, no, 50% of all our motor fuel.
Yeah, that's the ticket!

I ran E85 in my 20 vehicle fleet for ~20 years now & never had a fuel issue. We could easily replace 25% of national gasoline with Ethanol.

Why would we want to do that?

To fatten the wallets of the ass-fuckers.

I had a student tell me that if it weren't for ethanol, his parents' farm would go bankrupt.

 

[KissMy]

Two members of Congress demanded BP CEO Robert Dudley to explain an outage at the oil giant's refinery in northern Indiana, which has sent gas prices spiking in Michigan and in other parts of the upper Midwest.

Rep. Fred Upton, R-St. Joseph, chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and Rep. Jackie Walorski, R-Indiana, sent the letter Friday, they said, “because consumers have a right to know what is going on with the unscheduled shutdown of the Whiting refinery" -- referring to the shutdown of the refinery's three largest crude distillation units last Saturday.

In their letter they noted: “Some areas of the Midwest have seen prices rise over $1 per gallon over a 24-hour period, disproportionately affecting the most vulnerable of our constituents and resulting in large unpredicted costs in getting goods to market across the region. Additionally, some are worried that speculators may force additional increases due to lack of information.

In Michigan, average prices for regular unleaded gasoline have risen nearly 20 percent — or almost 50 cents a gallon to nearly $3 — in less than a week, AAA Michigan says.

The BP Whiting Refinery in northern Indiana shut down the largest of its three crude distillation units last Saturday. They want answers by next week — including how long the outage is expected to last and how BP will prevent price-gouging. They asked if other refineries could help make up the lost production.

Leaking tubes on a piece of equipment forced BP to shut the largest crude unit at its refinery near Chicago. It could be down for at least a month. The shutdown of the most important unit in the biggest plant in the Midwest has disrupted markets throughout the region.

BP spokesman Scott Dean didn’t respond directly to Upton’s letter but said the shutdown was “for unscheduled repair work. The shutdown was executed without incident and according to protocols. While the rest of the refinery continues to operate safely, the outage has reduced production.”

Susan Hiltz, the public affairs director for AAA of Michigan in Dearborn, said earlier this week, “Worst-case scenario, we would see increases of up to 80 cents over the next month.” The refinery is critical to the Midwest’s gas supply. The outage cuts the supply of gasoline to the Midwest in the middle of peak summer demand.

Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette on Friday warned that his office would investigate price gouging. He issued a warning to gas stations against any attempt to take advantage of consumers by price-gouging or price-fixing.

Schuette also wrote BP and other major petroleum companies outlining a need for transparency in the case of an outage or other unexpected event: “We will not tolerate any unscrupulous behavior that violates Michigan law when it comes to gouging and price fixing.”

 

[there4eyeM]

It should be obvious who is running things.

 

[KissMy]

In rural Illinois E85 Ethanol is only $1.67 at the pump. Gasoline is over $3.00

 

[Yarddog]

Big oil and the cons are ******* America so hard, your turds should just fall out of your ass. The GOP defends the greed of big oil, which is sabotaging the economy. More proof that the cons are the American Al Qaeda.

Oil Companies Report Record Profits -- $1,500 Per Second | U.S. News Best Cars

Actually, that's what big oil profits were in 2008. This year they're making $14,000.00 per second.

So, it would be better if they were losing 15K per second? I think you would be complaining about that to. So what exactly is the ethical rate of profit per second, and what do you base that on?

 

[there4eyeM]

How about if $10.00 per second were dedicated to real alternative energy solutions, so humans could have real, decentralized power?

 

[Politico]

The government is getting a record $2700 per second, in taxes on gasoline.

How much is wasted on bureaucratic crap? Why can't the government use this money to upgrade the roads.

Because there are no votes in it.

 

[Toddsterpatriot]

Two members of Congress demanded BP CEO Robert Dudley to explain an outage at the oil giant's refinery in northern Indiana, which has sent gas prices spiking in Michigan and in other parts of the upper Midwest.

Rep. Fred Upton, R-St. Joseph, chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and Rep. Jackie Walorski, R-Indiana, sent the letter Friday, they said, “because consumers have a right to know what is going on with the unscheduled shutdown of the Whiting refinery" -- referring to the shutdown of the refinery's three largest crude distillation units last Saturday.

In their letter they noted: “Some areas of the Midwest have seen prices rise over $1 per gallon over a 24-hour period, disproportionately affecting the most vulnerable of our constituents and resulting in large unpredicted costs in getting goods to market across the region. Additionally, some are worried that speculators may force additional increases due to lack of information.

In Michigan, average prices for regular unleaded gasoline have risen nearly 20 percent — or almost 50 cents a gallon to nearly $3 — in less than a week, AAA Michigan says.

The BP Whiting Refinery in northern Indiana shut down the largest of its three crude distillation units last Saturday. They want answers by next week — including how long the outage is expected to last and how BP will prevent price-gouging. They asked if other refineries could help make up the lost production.

Leaking tubes on a piece of equipment forced BP to shut the largest crude unit at its refinery near Chicago. It could be down for at least a month. The shutdown of the most important unit in the biggest plant in the Midwest has disrupted markets throughout the region.

BP spokesman Scott Dean didn’t respond directly to Upton’s letter but said the shutdown was “for unscheduled repair work. The shutdown was executed without incident and according to protocols. While the rest of the refinery continues to operate safely, the outage has reduced production.”

Susan Hiltz, the public affairs director for AAA of Michigan in Dearborn, said earlier this week, “Worst-case scenario, we would see increases of up to 80 cents over the next month.” The refinery is critical to the Midwest’s gas supply. The outage cuts the supply of gasoline to the Midwest in the middle of peak summer demand.

Michigan Attorney General Bill Schuette on Friday warned that his office would investigate price gouging. He issued a warning to gas stations against any attempt to take advantage of consumers by price-gouging or price-fixing.

Schuette also wrote BP and other major petroleum companies outlining a need for transparency in the case of an outage or other unexpected event: “We will not tolerate any unscrupulous behavior that violates Michigan law when it comes to gouging and price fixing.”

“Some areas of the Midwest have seen prices rise over $1 per gallon over a 24-hour period, disproportionately affecting the most vulnerable of our constituents"

Get those poor folks a Tesla, taxpayer funded, of course.

Has the RFG mandate been waived yet for the region?

 

[KissMy]

There is very small area requireing Boutique Gasoline out of the many affected states. Gasoline prices spiked all over Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Missouri, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Tennessee, Iowa, Minnesota, Kansas, Nebraska, Wisconsin, North & South Dakota. This is an oil company PADD boundry, not an EPA Boutique issue. This BS was to boost prices in the peak driving season. Gas price would be $1.96 like it is in South Carolina, but we pay $1 more here due to this Big Oil Scam.