US Distillate Fuel Reserves for October. Source Alex Epstein, original data EIA.GOV. Image modified, Biden Image public domain
Essay by Eric Worrall
Stock up now people. Alex Epstein makes the case that 2022’s desperate shortage of diesel heating fuel has been caused by Democrat hostility towards drilling and pipelines.
Our dangerous diesel shortage caused by anti-fossil-fuel politicians
The US is experiencing a dangerous shortage of diesel fuel. Blame our clueless anti-fossil-fuel politicians.
The US is experiencing a dangerous shortage of diesel fuel.
Blame our anti-fossil-fuel politicians, who:
- Prevented us from importing Canadian oil well-suited to our refineries
- Prevented or shut down diesel-producing capacity in the US
- Threatened new investments in diesel
- Diesel is the fuel of heavy-duty vehicles and is many Northeast homes’ source of heat. Prices are high and increasing because:
1) October inventories, which should have been high to prep for winter, were their lowest since records began in 1982.
2) Our ability to import diesel is uncertain.1Higher diesel prices mean higher prices for:
- agriculture, which uses diesel tractors and harvesters
- every physical product, which is transported by diesel trucks, trains, and cargo ships
- home heating, especially in the Northeast2
…Read more: https://alexepstein.substack.com/p/our-dangerous-diesel-shortage-caused
Biden can make up all the excuses he wants, but Biden was the President who cancelled the Keystone pipeline.
I have seen suggestions that completing the Keystone pipeline would not have made much difference. But Keystone would have provided at least 700,000 barrels per day of crude oil to US refineries. Given the shortfall seems to be around 10,000,000 barrels, going by the graph at the top of the page, and even considering that not all that crude oil would have been converted into fuel oil, it seems plausible that a few months of Keystone flow could have brought supplies back up to the long term average.
The symbolism of the Keystone cancellation may have had a more significant impact on oil availability than the actual cancellation.
The dip in drilling activity is real.
The Covid lockdowns and resulting crash in petroleum demand during 2020-21 may have been a factor. But it was obvious by mid 2020 the lockdowns couldn’t continue forever.
So, I would argue the Biden effect on drilling was far more significant that the transient Covid lockdown drop in demand.
I’m not alone in this view. Bloomberg, which usually supports President Biden, published an article last March which blames the lack of drilling activity on Democrat regulatory hostility.
Biden Wants U.S. Oil to Drill More. Here’s Why They’re Holding Back
- White House implores oil producers to pump more crude
- U.S. oil production remains below pre-pandemic levels
By Jennifer A Dlouhy, Jordan Fabian, and Kevin Crowley
11 March 2022, 22:00 GMT+10 Updated on
The war in Ukraine has touched off a feud between the White House and U.S. oil industry as many companies reap record profits from rising prices despite pumping less crude than before the pandemic, leaving American consumers beset by surging gasoline costs.
President Joe Biden has urged U.S. oil companies to step up production — but they are wary given his historic hostility toward fossil fuels and the risk that new drilling won’t pay off over the long term.
…
The Biden administration finds itself in the uncomfortable position of pleading with oil companies to boost crude production, despite its long-term goal of shifting the U.S. away from the fossil fuels that worsen climate change.
President Biden has done plenty to discourage oil field development since he cancelled the Keystone pipeline, such as when he told the public a few days ago – “No more drilling”.
I feel sorry for people in the North East who may be in for a long, hard winter. But I guess there are only so many times you can scare the Golden Goose, before it flies away and nests somewhere else.
via Watts Up With That?
November 11, 2022
Alex Epstein: USA Facing a Dangerous Shortage of Heating Fuel — Watts Up With That?