Gas Prices

[mrodgers]

Yeah but cars sold across the pond get a lot better gas mileage than here in the States. Also we add ethanol to the gas that burns up faster giving even worse mileage per gallon.

Actually, they just aren't stupid enough to drive 15 mpg SUVs. Their gallon is different than ours, so when you factor that in, the same car is relatively the same mpg (Focus getting 45mpg their in their gallon is roughly the same as a Focus getting 38 mpg here for a rough non-calcutated example.)

They do however have roughly the same median income in numbers as us ($35k £ single income vs. our $35k single income) and they can get a £2000 car with under 90,000 miles where it would cost us $12,000 or better.

 

[eliza61]

People, a big part of this is due to Mr. O shutting down the Keystone pipeline. Noticed I said big part and not all, those of you who have different political opinions.

Not really (and I don't say that based on my leanings but my dh is in the business). I just don't really think The keystone pipeline would have possibly have much of an effect on near term gas prices. It would have produce jobs but even it were approved it has a whole bunch of lawsuits that are going to take years to settle.

Right now, the US demand for gas has been falling ( http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-...oline-as-u-s-demand-falls-to-10-year-low.html ) and demand plays a very small percentage of the cost of a barrell of oil. Right now 2 major things are effecting our gasoline prices.

1) Our refinery capacity is getting smaller. Oil companies are not making the huge profits on refinery oil simply because it's cheaper to ship in gasoline and fuel oil from India. India has been constructing mega oil refineries .

2) Middle east cartel. Remember the pipelines would just ship petroleum from Canada but the cost per barrel generally would not have been cheaper. Canada for the most part, follows the same prices as the Arab nations. So if the Saudias or the speculators raise the cost of a barrel of oil it's not like Canada is then going to say "hey we'll sell it for 10 dollars cheaper" Canadian oil currently is a bit cheaper and if I've read correctly, the crude coming for that project would actually be more expensive due to the fact is sand oil and is harder to extract. don't quote me on that though.

3) lastly China is also becoming a major consumer of oil so we know longer hold all the ace cards in the supply and demand equation. When we cut back we use to be able to wiggle a few price concessions out of the arabs but now some one else is buying. Think of it like this, 10 years ago I was the only one buying your widgets so I could go to you and ask you to lower your prices. Now unfortunately lots of other folks are buying those widgets.


I think the pipe line not getting approved is/was negligable. that's just my take on it.

 

[DisneyMomma81]

Yeah and if it wasn't shut down we could be crying for water and the cost of that when the pipeline pollutes the aquafor that supplies water from North Dakota all the way down to Texas. I think I would opt to pay a bit more for gas now than worry about the survival of people to livestock to the food we grow in America in the future. That's my personal opinion anyway. Gas prices have a lot to do with a lot of different issues other than one pipeline shut down.

Bull - you think they wouldn't take every precaution to keep the environment safe? Your precious aquafor would've been just fine.
And did I say it's all because of the pipeline? Heck no. I'm aware there's other reasons, but that's certainly one of them.

Not really (and I don't say that based on my leanings but my dh is in the business). I just don't really think The keystone pipeline would have possibly have much of an effect on near term gas prices. It would have produce jobs but even it were approved it has a whole bunch of lawsuits that are going to take years to settle.

Right now, the US demand for gas has been falling and demand plays a very small percentage of the cost of a barrell of oil. Right now 2 major things are effecting our gasoline prices.

1) Our refinery capacity is getting smaller. Oil companies are not making the huge profits on refinery oil simply because it's cheaper to ship in gasoline and fuel oil from India. India has been constructing mega oil refineries .

2) Middle east cartel. Remember the pipelines would just ship petroleum from Canada but the cost per barrel generally would not have been cheaper. Canada for the most part, follows the same prices as the Arab nations. So if the Saudias or the speculators raise the cost of a barrel of oil it's not like Canada is then going to say "hey we'll sell it for 10 dollars cheaper" and if I've read correctly, the crude coming for that project would actually be more expensive due to the fact is sand oil and is harder to extract. don't quote me on that though.

3) lastly China is also becoming a major consumer of oil so we know longer hold all the ace cards in the supply and demand equation. When we cut back we use to be able to wiggle a few price concessions out of the arabs but now some one else is buying. Think of it like this, 10 years ago I was the only one buying your widgets so I could go to you and ask you to lower your prices. Now unfortunately lots of other folks are buying those widgets.


I think the pipe line not getting approved is/was negligable.

Sorry ladies ~ I will not change my views, you're welcome to yours but don't try to change mine. I'm sick of being PC, I refuse to be.

 

[eliza61]

Bull - you think they wouldn't take every precaution to keep the environment safe? Your precious aquafor would've been just fine.
And did I say it's all because of the pipeline? Heck no. I'm aware there's other reasons, but that's certainly one of them.




Sorry ladies ~ I will not change my views, you're welcome to yours but don't try to change mine. I'm sick of being PC, I refuse to be.

I didn't think I was trying to be PC nor change anyones views. I'm just trying to see how even if the pipeline was approved would any thing be different? As I said, it still has at least 3 major lawsuits that I know of that have to be settled before one drop of oil is pumped. What makes you think passage would have any effect on this years oil prices, if you don't mind me asking? Once again I'm thinking the price of oil is set on the world market not nationally. So I was just questioning how it would lower that cost.

 

[angwill]

Bull - you think they wouldn't take every precaution to keep the environment safe? Your precious aquafor would've been just fine.
And did I say it's all because of the pipeline? Heck no. I'm aware there's other reasons, but that's certainly one of them.




Sorry ladies ~ I will not change my views, you're welcome to yours but don't try to change mine. I'm sick of being PC, I refuse to be.

Wow I never said you needed to change your views. You are entitled to view it however you choose just as is everyone here.

Why are you getting so hot over politics anyway we are talking about simple oil costs not politicians and how we view their role in that cost or not. I thought politics were banned on the Dis anyway?

 

[angwill]

I didn't think I was trying to be PC nor change anyones views. I'm just trying to see how even if the pipeline was approved would any thing be different? As I said, it still has at least 3 major lawsuits that I know of that have to be settled before one drop of oil is pumped. What makes you think passage would have any effect on this years oil prices, if you don't mind me asking?

Thanks for sharing your info. It was interesting for me to read what you wrote and I saw nothing political in it either.

Some people see and blieve what goes along with their political conspiracy theory I guess?

 

[DisneyMomma81]

Thanks for sharing your info. It was interesting for me to read what you wrote and I saw nothing political in it either.

Some people see and blieve what goes along with their political conspiracy theory I guess?

And don't you do the same?? Oy! Conspiracy eh... geeze.

Eliza ~ why do I think the price will go down? Competition is a great thing, do I want my eggs, milk, vegatables/electronics to come from one supplier only? No.

But because I'm all for free market and smaller goverment that makes me an inferior, uneducated country bumpkin I suppose? No, I'll speak what's on my mine - heck I work for the federal goverment.

I'm done ~ quote me all you want, I won't revisit this thread, I've shared my opinion and that's that.

 

[JDUCKY]

It's pure market reasons.

The Iranian sanctions would cut off millions of barrels of oil from the market and, thus, the price of oil would rise.

BUT, we've seen oil drop from the $103/bbl range to near $97/bbl as of this moment.

Also, there was threat of refineries going on strike:
http://fuelfix.com/blog/2012/02/01/refiners-union-have-tentative-deal/

That is what kept gasoline prices up despite the price of oil going down.

Also, the dollar was dropping for a few days there (and the Euro gained) and that also affected prices.

Has nothing to do with Keystone, the phases of the moon, whose in office or who might be in office.

It's the markets...pure and simple.


Also, we'll likely see gas prices go up as the spring/summer months approach when refineries switch to "summer blend" which is required in many cities/states to reduce pollution and smog

 

[brucerob62]

no politics here just stating the obvious...oil companies have us over a barrel (no pun intended)...they will take advantage of us no matter what happens..its amazing how prices jump 15 or 20 cents in an hour..but fall 1 cent every couple of days..then go up another 10 or 15 cents..right away...wonder why that is..?..why dont they fall 15 or 20 cents in an hour?..we keep on buying gas guzzlers and dont seem to care..about the amt of money being spent on those beasts..buying gas is a drop in the bucket compared to that..

 

[Colleen27]

Yep. Our local station is up 20¢ since we got home from WDW on the 1st!

 

[Colleen27]

Bull - you think they wouldn't take every precaution to keep the environment safe? Your precious aquafor would've been just fine.

I think recent history shows us otherwise, and I'm not pointing to Deepwater Horizon which was simply a failure at the limits of technology. I'm talking about the line break that we had here in Michigan shortly thereafter, and another pipeline that was revealed by the subsequent period of hyper-vigilance to be significantly damaged. If the company bringing that oil across the Canadian border under the waterways that provide drinking water for all of Southeast Michigan had to be forced to maintain their pipeline, why should we think that this particular pipeline project would be any different?

 

[angwill]

One thing I was surpised to see was that gas in Fl was as much as it was in the midwest last week. Usually it is quite a bit less expensive in Fl.

 

[North of Mouse]

We went from $3.48 to $3.71 in a week's time. Can't figure out why. Isn't the price of a barrel of oil down below $100 (around $90)?

Wow, don't know where in NC you live, but ours jumped from $3.41 to $3.53 I paid yest.

 

[North of Mouse]

angwill, our last couple years in FL has been higher than here and the cheapest on our trip down to Disney has been GA. Their taxes on it are cheaper and that makes a big difference. They just went up again here

 

[disynut]

3.39 in western ky

 

[disprincessatheart]

I was shocked to see one station at $3.39 here tonight. The rest have been and still are around $3.55. Of course I drive very little now (about 1 tank a month which is 11 gallons) so I didn't even need gas, but I was nice to see!

 

[North of Mouse]

I was shocked to see one station at $3.39 here tonight. The rest have been and still are around $3.55. Of course I drive very little now (about 1 tank a month which is 11 gallons) so I didn't even need gas, but I was nice to see!

Yep, you're right. You must live around Fuquay? For some reason it's been a lot cheaper down there for quite some time - not so for us N. Raleighites

 

[Pikezh638]

In one week it went from 3.19 to 3.25 to 3.22 to 3.20 to 3.25 to 3.29.... I hate gasoline....

Of course my truck decides to get thirsty around the 3.29 day

 

[Jonesloonybin]

Yep, you're right. You must live around Fuquay? For some reason it's been a lot cheaper down there for quite some time - not so for us N. Raleighites

Heck even here in Johnston County the prices are in the $3.50's! BJ's is still the best price around but not by much. It went down to $3.44 for about 8 hours then was back up to $3.47. And that was 3 days ago. I was hoping that the gas would stay down for our trip in May, but it doesn't look like it. I really do not want to be seeing $4-$5 a gallon!!

 

[North of Mouse]

Heck even here in Johnston County the prices are in the $3.50's! BJ's is still the best price around but not by much. It went down to $3.44 for about 8 hours then was back up to $3.47. And that was 3 days ago. I was hoping that the gas would stay down for our trip in May, but it doesn't look like it. I really do not want to be seeing $4-$5 a gallon!!

We have a trip to see the mouse in late April and our MH does love it's gas It's filled and ready to go on cheaper gas, but by the time it gets to GA it will definitely start to get thirsty - that's the best prices that we usually find on our trip Guess we'll go til we can't, then we'll stop