Gas Pump Prices Rising Five Times Faster Than Crude Oil in U.S.

[Wiljor]

Gasoline is rising five times faster than crude oil as refinery shutdowns limit supplies.

Retail gasoline increased 0.3 cent to $2.458 a gallon Thursday, the highest level since Dec. 17, according to Heathrow, Florida-based AAA. After climbing 20 percent since Jan. 31, prices will rise by another 20 cents this month because of refinery maintenance and unexpected outages, the nation’s largest motoring group estimates.

Refineries are operating at the lowest rate in six weeks, government data show. Fuel production may slow further as more plants shut for seasonal maintenance. Gasoline is also climbing as the panic in oil markets subsides, with volatility the lowest in three months. The gain threatens to reduce the windfall to U.S. drivers from last year’s plunge.

“The refinery problems led to increases in futures and wholesale prices,” Andy Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates LLC, an energy consulting firm in Houston, said by phone Thursday. “Gasoline doesn’t go up and down with crude oil. The problems are more on the gasoline front.”

Pump prices outpaced a 4 percent gain in U.S. benchmark crude since the end of January. West Coast gasoline jumped after an explosion at an Exxon Mobil Corp. refinery near Los Angeles, and East Coast supplies fell the most since October after upsets at plants near Philadelphia.

“Gasoline prices are still expected to rise,” Michael Green, an AAA spokesman, said by phone Thursday. “But we are not going to have a dramatic increase that could send prices above $3 a gallon.”

American households are expected to save $750 each on lower gasoline costs in 2015 compared to 2014, the EIA said last month.

Refinery Rates

U.S. refiners operated at 86.6 percent of their capacity last week, the lowest level since Jan. 19, according to the Energy Information Administration.

Refineries on the East Coast processed the least crude in more than two years as a cold blast swept through the region. Philadelphia Energy Solutions put the restart of a fluid catalytic cracker on hold for a week before introducing feed to the unit Thursday, according to a person familiar with plant operations.

Exxon had an explosion Feb. 18 at its Torrance refinery in Southern California that damaged and shut several units. Tesoro Corp.’s Golden Eagle plant near San Francisco is expected to remain idled for another week for maintenance. The site was partially shut for repairs when United Steelworkers began striking on Feb. 1, and the company shut all other units after the walkout.

Retail gasoline on the West Coast rose a record 37.2 cents a gallon to $3.13 in the week through March 2, EIA data show.

Seasonal Issues

“It’s the normal confluence of seasonal refinery issues,” said Patrick DeHaan, a senior petroleum analyst at GasBuddy Organization Inc., said by phone. “It’s being enhanced in some areas of the country. On the West Coast, the refinery explosion is making more of an impact.”

Refinery outages are reducing gasoline supplies just as demand is rising. Stockpiles in the East Coast, known as PADD 1, dropped to 67.6 million barrels last week, the lowest level since Jan. 23, according to the EIA. Production decreased to 9.52 million barrels a day, down 1.4 percent from the previous week.

Gasoline’s gain came as crude oil is at the least volatile level this year. The CBOE Crude Oil Volatility Index dropped to 46.9 Friday, the lowest level since Dec. 11. Gasoline for April delivery on Nymex was $29.31 a barrel over WTI Friday, $5 above the five-year average for this time of year.

When refiners return from maintenance, they will begin to adjust their gasoline production, said Lipow. High margins may encourage them to run their operations “as much as they can.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-03-06/gas-pump-prices-rising-five-times-faster-than-crude-oil-in-u-s-

[nstoolman1]

It is called ........

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wait for it...........

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

GREED

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Gas prices are what they were when crude was $100 a barrel. 

Go figure. 

[bigwave]

gas over here is $3.65.

 

The CA goberment is out of control.