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California leaders report four to six weeks worth of gasoline and diesel supply

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Re: California leaders report four to six weeks worth of gasoline and diesel supply

#91

Post by joshuahaglund »

com2kid wrote: post #37
JumpCrisscross wrote: post #27

I’m surprised that only “18.9% of new car sales” in California are electric [1]. [1] https://www.energy.ca.gov/news/2026-01/california-surpasses-...

Other countries have $15k new electric city cars for sale. The US doesn't. Our domestic car manufacturers are either uninterested or unable to make them, and import bans are in place on foreign cars that meet that price point. Also our infra not being 240v is hurting us. The rest of the world can just plug in overnight to any regular outlet and it is good enough for almost any commute. My EV on a 120v outlet I can ma…

I think most of the US has 240 to the home. Look at your power feed, if there are two insulated conductors on an uninsulated line, those are two 120V lines of opposite phase/polarity. I have a friend who temporarily ran a 240 volt welder by plugging into a custom outlet box, wired with two plugs that went to two outlets on different legs of the breaker box. Electric ovens, ACs, hot tubs, dryers, etc. are all commonly 240 and work with the right house breaker and wiring setup.

Re: California leaders report four to six weeks worth of gasoline and diesel supply

#92

Post by legitster »

Avicebron wrote: post #66
tpurves wrote: post #45

What this article fails to mention is that there are also a record number of empty tankers routed to the US refineries right now, with the intention of shifting still-relatively cheap US oil products to overseas markets where the prices are already much higher and shortages have already hit. The effects of the Iran war on the US economy will really start to kick in over the next several months.

I suppose it's too much to ask that oil produced in the US be used for the US people?

Depending on the type of oil and the refinery availability it's not that simple. Not all sources of oil can go to all refineries.

Also, there's the bigger geopolitical problems that creates. If the US knocks over the global energy supply and then retreats and abandons our trading partners, the knock-on effects would be even worse.

A large part of the reason WWII existed was the breakdown of international trade during the Great Depression. Countries without domestic supplies of their own were forced to grab territory instead of peacefully trading for what they needed.

Re: California leaders report four to six weeks worth of gasoline and diesel supply

#93

Post by mylifeandtimes »

com2kid wrote: post #55
hamdingers wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

A bicycle and moderate fitness is the ultimate in self-reliance but you never heard them promoting that either.

Bicycle doesn't carry a family of 4, or carry loads of dirt or pick up lumber or tow a trailer. Also my e-bike needs more maintenance than my EV. Go figure.

carry a family of 4 where? if you rely on that other location exisiting, you are not self-reliant.

tow a trailer where? see above.

Pick up a load of dirt or lumber-- how did those materials get to the pick-up point?

And the road you are driving on, where did it come from?

Re: California leaders report four to six weeks worth of gasoline and diesel supply

#94

Post by jeffbee »

brightball wrote: post #70
rconti wrote: post #31

I'm a bit perplexed on this one-- Yes, we refine our own blend of gasoline, but it's based on market oil -- nothing about the war we started with Iran impacts our domestic refining capability. Also, oil takes longer to get from Iran to the west coast than to the east coast. Shouldn't the east coast be the first to notice decreased shipments, because the west coast essentially has a stock still in transit for longer?…

2 refineries in California were closed over the last 2 years leading to a 17% reduction in total refining capacity. Per the article, the type of fuel needed by California standards is produced at refineries in India, South Korea and Washington. https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=65704

... because demand is down. California hit peak gas sales 20 years ago and reaching zero motor fuel sales is foreseeable.

Re: California leaders report four to six weeks worth of gasoline and diesel supply

#96

Post by Plasmoid »

rconti wrote: post #21
sfghsdgh wrote: post #12

6 weeks are standard. If you want to keep it for longer it needs additives which increase price. Noone does that usually.

I think in this case it's 6 weeks but _declining_, but that's a good distinction to point out.

Yeah, but what's the burn rate?

If it's going down at 1 day per week then it's not so bad. If it's closer to 0.75 days per day, that's much more serious.

Re: California leaders report four to six weeks worth of gasoline and diesel supply

#97

Post by colechristensen »

kyrra wrote: post #64
tpurves wrote: post #45

What this article fails to mention is that there are also a record number of empty tankers routed to the US refineries right now, with the intention of shifting still-relatively cheap US oil products to overseas markets where the prices are already much higher and shortages have already hit. The effects of the Iran war on the US economy will really start to kick in over the next several months.

California also needs a special blend that is only required in California (CARBOB). A lot of that is refined outside of the US, because there is not the capacity domestically. Cali could immediately have more fuel and cheaper prices by dropping their special requirements.

Does this have anything to do with the extensive and happening now or very recent shutdowns of several california refineries?

Re: California leaders report four to six weeks worth of gasoline and diesel supply

#98

Post by annoyingnoob »

kyrra wrote: post #64
tpurves wrote: post #45

What this article fails to mention is that there are also a record number of empty tankers routed to the US refineries right now, with the intention of shifting still-relatively cheap US oil products to overseas markets where the prices are already much higher and shortages have already hit. The effects of the Iran war on the US economy will really start to kick in over the next several months.

California also needs a special blend that is only required in California (CARBOB). A lot of that is refined outside of the US, because there is not the capacity domestically. Cali could immediately have more fuel and cheaper prices by dropping their special requirements.

We could die chocking on the air that produces too. Understand the history in CA and the reasons we have special gas. Would you really want to hurt children for cheaper gas? Really?

https://today.usc.edu/las-environmental-success-story-cleane...

Re: California leaders report four to six weeks worth of gasoline and diesel supply

#99

Post by at-fates-hands »

kyrra wrote: post #64
tpurves wrote: post #45

What this article fails to mention is that there are also a record number of empty tankers routed to the US refineries right now, with the intention of shifting still-relatively cheap US oil products to overseas markets where the prices are already much higher and shortages have already hit. The effects of the Iran war on the US economy will really start to kick in over the next several months.

California also needs a special blend that is only required in California (CARBOB). A lot of that is refined outside of the US, because there is not the capacity domestically. Cali could immediately have more fuel and cheaper prices by dropping their special requirements.

Last year there was some rumbling that Newsom would start to increase production because two refineries were closing sooner than later with the prospect of much higher gas prices. Since CA is really pushing renewables hard and transitioning off of fossil fuels, all the front runners for CA governor have indicated they are steadfastly against increasing production.

Gavin Newsom warms to Big Oil in climate reversal: https://calmatters.org/politics/2025/08/oil-compromise-calif...

I think your idea is a great solution to the problem and would give politicians cover with their environmental base and a win for their constituents.

Re: California leaders report four to six weeks worth of gasoline and diesel supply

#100

Post by dylan604 »

josuepeq wrote: post #17

Soon gas stations in the Bay Area will have to price Gasoline in quarts, because the gas pumps can only display up to $9.99.

That'll confuse the average driver. The number of people that know the various measurements for fluids is not that high. I can totally see some future social media posts excited about the $2.99 price and then getting upset when the pump shows .25 gallons.
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