Gas Prices

[garagerog]

Only us old geezers remember the long lines, every other day fill-ups, and the wasted time of the early '70's, and yes the increase in price too. Not worth my time to research the price increase in percentage terms as I really don't care as much about price as availability, thankfully we're not dependent on the middle east for our domestic supply any longer. I was reminded of this a few years ago when we were almost stranded in Maggie Valley,NC when Russian hackers shut down a pipeline from the Gulf that supplied a good part of the SE with refined product. All flow valving had been converted to electro-mechanical switching controlled by computers and all the old geezers that had a clue how to bypass the new valving had retired, so the pipeline company payed the ransomware hackers. There are only 4 gas stations in Maggie Valley, tourist town with mainly hostelry, restaurants, and curio shops. Fortunately for us the owner of our Air BNB had just seen a tanker at a Citgo station, so we hustled on down there and filled up. You hear lip service about how our critical infrastructure is vulnerable to foreign adversaries, but the solution seems to be all about "hardening" our critical systems against computer attack. It would be expensive to install and train the personel but I believe we need MECHANICAL redundant systems at all our critical points, a mechanical switch that could actually be thrown by a human at a substation or an actual valve that could be turned by a human at our domestic water supply station, but that's just me, since I'm old my only worries are for my children and grandchildren and their world.

[KARNUT]

3.77 QT Conroe TX

[richard wysong]

Lowest I've seen locally today is $4.27, most places mid to high $4.30s

[KARNUT]

3.87 Kroger’s in Montgomery TX.

[RyanbabZ71]

Under $4 here again, mainly because the suspension of the gas tax(es)

[Grumpy Bear]

Still $5 plus here. 

[Atlas]

If we suspended our state gas tax here, the price per gallon would be $4.95 versus the $5.50 it is today for 87.

 

That's still high as balls all because of this stupid war.

[CamGTP]

Any fuel tax suspension is just stupid because they will complain about it in every single legislative session moving forward, saying we don't have as much money anymore. Then they will dream up new ways to tax you more while also asking for pay raises for themselves because it's a tough job and hard to make ends meet.

Edited May 12 by CamGTP

[Jsdirt]

On 5/10/2026 at 6:12 PM, richard wysong said:

Lowest I've seen locally today is $4.27, most places mid to high $4.30s

That's WAY cheaper than us in central and western-central MA. $4.38-$4.49 out here. 

[Jsdirt]

Well, gas prices would be low if we didn't have a combined 12 years of ideologues chirping about how "evil" oil and oil companies were. Why, you ask? When people say things like that, would YOU fork out millions of your dollars to build one? Nobody who understands how business operates would on their worst day!

 

We don't have anywhere near the amount of refineries capable of refining light sweet crude, which is a TX staple (and most of the USA from what I understand), so it all gets sold overseas where they have that capability. We haven't built a new refinery in America since the late 70's!! This is all thanks to militant environmentalism. All our ancient refineries can handle the dirty, mid-east oil ... so we have to import it. We've been beholden to global market speculators FOREVER.

 

I get it - everyone, even us Conservatives, want clean air and water (contrary to corporate media's take ...). But, shooting yourself in the foot based on unproven "science" is just plain STUPID. Not one person on this planet would run their household like this!

 

While America suffers due to all these restrictions, China and India mine coal and burn whatever they need to to keep their BILLIONS of people comfortable and fed. 

 

Building an new refinery today doesn't mean an environmental disaster! They seem set on believing that green energy and similar profits as big oil are going to happen full scale. Not in our lifetime ... unless AI dreams up something earth-shattering.

 

Since we could be less than 3 years away from a 180° political shift, NOT ONE oil company is going to dare spend the tens of millions of dollars of an investment, only to be shot down in flames by the next enviro-nazi. Do you blame them?

 

So ... enjoy the fuel prices if you don't like the current leadership. Even with the war, prices would be $2 a gallon cheaper on average if we could refine what we have, and not be in a monetary stranglehold dictated by global speculators. 

 

And here's another take: IF prior presidents had taken care of Iran decades ago instead of bending over backwards and feeding them pallets of cash, we wouldn't be here right now!!

[KARNUT]

7 hours ago, CamGTP said:

Any fuel tax suspension is just stupid because they will complain about it in every single legislative session moving forward, saying we don't have as much money anymore. Then they will dream up new ways to tax you more while also asking for pay raises for themselves because it's a tough job and hard to make ends meet.

You mean the same states who say defund the police? There’s saving there. As we all know that wouldn’t raise the crime rates. Right? Anyone over 30 should know how the game is played in government especially. Knowing that how to mitigate the whims of our fearless leaders. I’m thankful that finally someone has the gonads to eliminate a potential disaster that everyone has warned us about. I was in the gas lines of the seventies. Bought my first home at 13 percent interest. Saw the hostage crisis until Reagan. And saw a resurgence of our economy shortly after. I know the game and who the grifters are, right Nancy. I’m ok with the federal taxes on gas. But I know how the game is played. I’m prepared. Venezuela the fifty first state sure, fifty two Cuba. Yea baby.

[Atlas]

The US just announced loans of strategic oil reserve to major us oil companies and apparently the federal gas tax can be suspended with a tweet.

 

Inflation's as high as it was in 2023 again. 

 

wInNinG AgAiN

 

Still no nukes found in Iran, we still don't have their supposed stockpile of enriched uranium, and gas is $5. People are so freaking stupid in this country.

[KARNUT]

2 minutes ago, Atlas said:

The US just announced loans of strategic oil reserve to major us oil companies and apparently the federal gas tax can be suspended with a tweet.

 

Inflation's as high as it was in 2023 again. 

 

wInNinG AgAiN

 

Still no nukes found in Iran, we still don't have their supposed stockpile of enriched uranium, and gas is $5. People are so freaking stupid in this country.

Does your mirror talk to you? Do you answer?

[Grumpy Bear]

10 hours ago, Jsdirt said:

We don't have anywhere near the amount of refineries capable of refining light sweet crude, which is a TX staple (and most of the USA from what I understand), so it all gets sold overseas where they have that capability. We haven't built a new refinery in America since the late 70's!! This is all thanks to militant environmentalism. All our ancient refineries can handle the dirty, mid-east oil ... so we have to import it. We've been beholden to global market speculators FOREVER.

 

Now we are in my wheelhouse  

 

Any refinery that can run sour crude can and does process sweet. Just can't do it as efficiently. Fact, no refinery in the USA processes ONLY sour crude. They are run on a blend and that the split has more to do with the price of the various feed streams or equipment utilization numbers than the processing equipment itself. 

 

When you run sweet in a sour plant there are certain parts of the plant that no long have a function OR are not fully utilized. Sulphur content is what determines the feed being called sour or sweet. 

 

So when WTI is sold to Europe it isn't due to a lack of processing ability. It's due to 'limiting profit' running it here.  

 

Sour crudes are not just the middle east. Venezuela, Canada, Mexico are also sour. We import all three. Chevron has a very large presents in Venezuela. Chevron's refinery in Pascagoula, Mississippi, and several others along the Gulf Coast,  Valero and Marathon Oil are sour plants as are many in the Midwest that use Canada crudes. 

 

This all is tied more to profit than to ability. A new refinery built specifically for WTI just makes more money but supply is limited in the big picture.  

 

Fact is we only have one refinery in the USA that processes only sweet. Toledo Ohio and it isn't a big one. 180K bpd. There is a second planed for Brownsville to run sweet shale crudes but....also small 160K bpd.

 

Fact, it is cheaper to build and run a sweet plant and there are more high value products in sweet crudes. There is just a limited supply on the planet. Sour plants proliferate in the USA due to past practice when OPEC was flooding the market and it was cheap enough to warrant such a move and US production of sweet was small. There are refineries in the USA that have units that date back to the 1920's. 

 

I worked a Getty light gas plant that changed boiler and thermal cracker fuel type up to four times a day based on cost. Ran our butts ragged during the 70's embargo. Nothing in a refinery is not driven by extracting that last penny a barrel. It has nothing to do with the needs of a nation or it's people. 

Edited May 12 by Grumpy Bear

[KARNUT]

3.75 Kroger’s in Montgomery TX.