California Blames Big Oil For Gas Price Spikes, Wants Even More Regulations And Fines

[rangerrebew]

California Blames Big Oil For Gas Price Spikes, Wants Even More Regulations And Fines
by Kevin Killough  Aug 19, 2024

California’s Gov. Gavin Newsom has a new plan for how his state can avoid gasoline price spikes — more regulation. [emphasis, links added]

Newsom’s proposed rule would require that petroleum refiners in his state maintain a minimum fuel reserve to prevent shortages that cause higher prices.


In an announcement on the proposal, Newsom blamed oil companies for high gasoline prices and promised further regulation of the industry would solve the problem for residents of the state.

“Price spikes at the pump are profit spikes for Big Oil. Refiners should be required to plan ahead and backfill supplies to keep prices stable, instead of playing games to earn even more profits. By making refiners act responsibly and maintain a gas reserve, Californians would save money at the pump every year,” Newsom said in a statement.

https://climatechangedispatch.com/california-blames-big-oil-for-gas-price-spikes-wants-even-more-regulations-and-fines/

[rangerrebew]

The problem is approached in true liberal style - with pure stupidity.

[Smokin Joe]

Shut in the wells, shut down the plants, and leave.
Chevron is moving to Texas, anyway, even though there will be assets in California. (Hard to pack up oil wells and tote them cross country, but refineries can be dismantled and hauled away.)
Then watch the market do its thing with the dregs left in the tanks.
North Dakota's oil production passed California's (North Dakota on the way up, California on the way down) years ago. It isn't that California doesn't have oil, there's plenty. But California has more idiots per capita who think their world will run on sunshine and rainbows and unicorn farts.
Besides, they don't need oil, they ride the bus.

Makes me wonder if the Neanderthals (allegedly more intelligent than Homo Sapiens) went insane before they died out or were assimilated.
California's policies make California gas expensive, from boutique blending to regulations to taxes.

[PeteS in CA]

As I posted in another California thread:

Standard biennial CA-Dem shtick. Always ends with an investigation that find that the EEEeeeeeee-vile oil companies did not price gouge. I think that even Goobernor Noisome should understand that Chevron, Valero, et al could just shut down their refineries, crashing California. But maybe he's gone that degree of stupid ...

I wonder if this BS is in support of Kammie & Timmie trying to shift blame for Bidenflation - claiming that grocery stores, food processors, and oil companies are causing inflation, not LIEden constricting oil supplies and governments imposing arbitrary minimum wage levels.

[catfish1957]

Nothing would humor me more than to see all of Big Oil evacuate and leave CA, and leave the industry to some small Indys.

Californians......   just watch what will happen to your gas prices then.   Add an extra middleman in the commodity supply chain, always works out for the best.  /s

[Free Vulcan]

Sounds like they're trying to make that $73B budget hole a whole lot bigger.

[catfish1957]

Sounds like they're trying to make that $73B budget hole a whole lot bigger.

With 54 EV's given every 4 years.....   Relief's only one federal bailout away.   

[IsailedawayfromFR]

Shut in the wells, shut down the plants, and leave.
Chevron is moving to Texas, anyway, even though there will be assets in California. (Hard to pack up oil wells and tote them cross country, but refineries can be dismantled and hauled away.)
Then watch the market do its thing with the dregs left in the tanks.
North Dakota's oil production passed California's (North Dakota on the way up, California on the way down) years ago. It isn't that California doesn't have oil, there's plenty. But California has more idiots per capita who think their world will run on sunshine and rainbows and unicorn farts.
Besides, they don't need oil, they ride the bus.

Makes me wonder if the Neanderthals (allegedly more intelligent than Homo Sapiens) went insane before they died out or were assimilated.
California's policies make California gas expensive, from boutique blending to regulations to taxes.

I worked for Occidental which was a California company, HQd in Los Angeles for 92 years and was second to only Chevron in oil/gas production in the state, besides being the state's largest private landowner.

Oxy left CA totally in 2014 and moved to Houston.  Before it moved, it spun off 100% of its CA assets so the state could not hamper it by these types of instances now being seen inflicted on Chevron.

Chevron simply will be bled dry by California if they do not move, and quickly.  The state needs to blame someone for its own stupidity.

Oh, I foresee not independents taking over Chevron's refinery and production assets, but Chinese companies who care less about making money but will seize the opportunity to weaken the US further by controlling much of the West Coast oil industry activities.

[Hoodat]

Shut in the wells, shut down the plants, and leave.

Damn straight!

[DB]

And while the state demands new storage they won't sign off on the permits to do so.

The impending trainwreck is gaining speed...

[DefiantMassRINO]

California only has its own state government environmental policies to blame.

California requires its own, unique blend(s) of gasoline which limits the number of refineries capable of supplying it.

America needs a single, year-round, national blend of gasoline to squeeze seasonal and regional inefficiencies out of the gasoline supply system.

[catfish1957]

America needs a single, year-round, national blend of gasoline to squeeze seasonal and regional inefficiencies out of the gasoline supply system.

Pretty much have been saying this for 30 years.  The RVP and summer formulations is for Ozone non-attainment areas that have been in place have been shown to have a minimal effect of benefits. And that is a dirty secret that is not being shared with the American public.

Back in the '90's the EPA told the country that Ozone Action Days (non-met induced) with disappear with this and government suggested carpooling, etc.  Less Butenes, Pentenes, and isomers blends thereof, not only are worse for your engine, they really don't do much good for the environment.

All its done is make gasoline more expensive, by limiting distribution options for refineries/pipelines, and complicating production.

[PeteS in CA]

California only has its own state government environmental policies to blame.

California requires its own, unique blend(s) of gasoline which limits the number of refineries capable of supplying it.

America needs a single, year-round, national blend of gasoline to squeeze seasonal and regional inefficiencies out of the gasoline supply system.

The boutique blends are at least partly imposed by the Federal government: the Feds ordered that something be done; the state created the recipe.

The net result of the idiocy is price bumps in Mid-May and Mid-November, when refineries gradually shift their capacity over to the upcoming season's formulation, constricting supply and raising prices. Oregon has its own boutique formulation(s), so gas produced there can't be sold in the areas of California near Oregon. Ditto for Nevada and Arizona.

[Fishrrman]

If you're in the "fossil fuel" business, the only "answer" to the California "problem", is to pack up and leave.

And not look back.

Actually, that's becoming the only answer for just about all rational people.

Who in this forum thinks that things will EVER be "turned back around" there?

[SZonian]

California only has its own state government environmental policies to blame.

California requires its own, unique blend(s) of gasoline which limits the number of refineries capable of supplying it.

America needs a single, year-round, national blend of gasoline to squeeze seasonal and regional inefficiencies out of the gasoline supply system.

Like @catfish1957, I too have been saying this. But because each state is allowed to implement its own regulations, we'll never see it.
And as far as increased prices go, when gas hit $6+ per gallon here, I watched how people drove on the freeways and if they modified their behavior (speeding). They didn't and still don't with gas at nominally $5 per gallon. I am of the opinion that it'll take shortages of near cataclysmic conditions to force people to modify their driving.

[MeganC]

Who in this forum thinks that things will EVER be "turned back around" there?

California must fail before it can get better.

[DB]

Like @catfish1957, I too have been saying this. But because each state is allowed to implement its own regulations, we'll never see it.
And as far as increased prices go, when gas hit $6+ per gallon here, I watched how people drove on the freeways and if they modified their behavior (speeding). They didn't and still don't with gas at nominally $5 per gallon. I am of the opinion that it'll take shortages of near cataclysmic conditions to force people to modify their driving.

They need to modify their voting, not their driving.

[IsailedawayfromFR]

All its done is make gasoline more expensive, by limiting distribution options for refineries/pipelines, and complicating production.

One word:  Control

[IsailedawayfromFR]

California must fail before it can get better.

Yep,

[Smokin Joe]

If you're in the "fossil fuel" business, the only "answer" to the California "problem", is to pack up and leave.

And not look back.

Actually, that's becoming the only answer for just about all rational people.

Who in this forum thinks that things will EVER be "turned back around" there?

When the Gulf of San Andreas opens up...maybe.

[IsailedawayfromFR]

When the Gulf of San Andreas opens up...maybe.

Or when California permits the Chicoms to take over their oil and gas operations and refineries when the American companies leave.....

[PeteS in CA]

When the Gulf of San Andreas opens up...maybe.

Sorry to disappoint, but most of California is east of the San Andreas Fault, including SF. The fault veers off into the Pacific right at SF's ocean coast.

[IsailedawayfromFR]

Sorry to disappoint, but most of California is east of the San Andreas Fault, including SF. The fault veers off into the Pacific right at SF's ocean coast.

most of the population of California is west of the fault.


Oh, BTW, I trust you know the guy you answered is a geologist.

My experience with him is that he does not make misstatements in his area of expertise,  and rarely outside of them.

[Smokin Joe]

Sorry to disappoint, but most of California is east of the San Andreas Fault, including SF. The fault veers off into the Pacific right at SF's ocean coast.

The more rural parts of California tend to be the most sane, as we are commonly reminded by the Californians here, especially in the north. If you wanted California to return to sanity, the highest population density areas are the ones that need to turn around. My point is that a major rift along the length of that fault (highly unlikely in a single event, or in our lifetimes from a geological standpoint) would peel off the highest density of population while leaving the relatively conservative regions unscathed in the North and northern interior of the State.

[PeteS in CA]

The more rural parts of California tend to be the most sane, as we are commonly reminded by the Californians here, especially in the north. ...

While I live "in" San Jose, CA's third largest city, I grew up in rural Yolo County, 5-6 miles from the nearest (not Davis) town.