Where can I buy US gas?

[amylevan]

the only sure fire one to avoid is conoco / 711 gas. That is a south american product. from oil to refinery.

My dad used to work for a refinery and like the PP said, whatever the name on the gas station has really nothing to do with who actually refined the gas.

Having said that, Conoco gas stations are owned by Philips 66. Not a necessarily south american product.

 

[havaneselover]

My dad used to work for a refinery and like the PP said, whatever the name on the gas station has really nothing to do with who actually refined the gas.

Having said that, Conoco gas stations are owned by Philips 66. Not a necessarily south american product.

I think it's citgo that I try to avoid. It used to be that citgo/7 eleven was Hugo Chavez gas.

 

[mcorbo]

If you want to buy American, buy an electric car. Electricity isn't imported.

BUT, electricity may be generated with imported oil!

 

[supersnoop]

BUT, electricity may be generated with imported oil!

Nope, electricity is mainly generated by natural gas, with with rest coming from coal, wind, and solar.

 

[amylevan]

Nope, electricity is mainly generated by natural gas, with with rest coming from coal, wind, and solar.

To be a little picky, in the US, most of our electricity still comes from coal, with natural gas coming in second. Nuclear is close behind in third. Solar and wind are still almost a non-factor (about 5% combined). And yes, about 1% is from petroleum.

 

[DSLRuser]

My dad used to work for a refinery and like the PP said, whatever the name on the gas station has really nothing to do with who actually refined the gas.

Having said that, Conoco gas stations are owned by Philips 66. Not a necessarily south american product.

You are correct. I got them wrong. It is Citgo you should avoid because the gas comes from Hugo Chavez and Venezuela.

 

[supersnoop]

To be a little picky, in the US, most of our electricity still comes from coal, with natural gas coming in second. Nuclear is close behind in third. Solar and wind are still almost a non-factor (about 5% combined). And yes, about 1% is from petroleum.

Your information is out of date. Natural gas has become so inexpensive, that it overtook coal as the largest source of electricity for the second half of last year.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

As intelligent as all this seems.....I wouldn't rule out the possibility that gas prices are so low because of the pending presidential election. Its a very pivotal time in our country both economically, and socially. I don't think the "improved economy" or the falling gas prices are coincidental. I'm sure there are plenty that disagree, but there's a false sense of stability and a growing sense of entitlement that is being fueled by current events. If nothing else, it will be interesting to watch.

Oil & the economy are always linked. Every national economic boom in the past 70 years has coincided with cheap oil. And every economic bust has coincided with high oil prices.

I however doubt the President has an impact. Besides, he's on record saying $3.75 is the "right price" for gas because he believes that price Spurs alternative energy development.

 

[usnuzuloose]

Two edged sword. Gas prices are down because of an over supply of oil, OPEC manipulation, and our cars get better mileage*, plus many drive hybrids and electric cars. Here in California there is a push to switch from a gas tax to paying per mile you drive, because folks driving hybrids and electric cars aren't paying their fair share and their cars wear out the road just the same as a gasoline only car.

*At the time of of the OPEC oil embargo of 1973 I was driving a Buick Apollo (Buick's version of the Chevy Nova) that got 8 miles to the gallon in town, and 11 on the freeway.
Today I have a comparably sized Ford Taurus that gets 20 in town, and 27 on the freeway.

How can you pay by how many miles you drive?

 

[supersnoop]

How can you pay by how many miles you drive?

Annual registration and inspection with a charge based on mileage.

 

[afan]

Your information is out of date. Natural gas has become so inexpensive, that it overtook coal as the largest source of electricity for the second half of last year.

Don't forget about hydro. A lot of the pnw power is hydro.

 

[tvguy]

How can you pay by how many miles you drive?

From the article below
The driver chooses from several “payment” options: pre-set time or set distance fees; per-mile charges via odometer readings; automated mileage reporting without location data through smartphone applications, or automated mileage reporting with location data collected by in-vehicle devices or a third-party service, according to Caltrans. The study would examine issues of privacy, payment methods, per-mile rates and whether all miles should be logged or just miles traveled within California.
http://www.presstelegram.com/article/20160125/NEWS/160129702

 

[tvguy]

Nope, electricity is mainly generated by natural gas, with with rest coming from coal, wind, and solar.

Hydro-electric generation is big here, amazing given the drought. I'm 6 months into having solar panels, I will be interested to see at the end of the first year how much of my electricity came from the panels on my roof. My electric bill for December to my utility was $18, and to my Solar company was $80, so it appears well over half my power is coming off my roof.

 

[havaneselover]

Oil & the economy are always linked. Every national economic boom in the past 70 years has coincided with cheap oil. And every economic bust has coincided with high oil prices.

I however doubt the President has an impact. Besides, he's on record saying $3.75 is the "right price" for gas because he believes that price Spurs alternative energy development.

Not really true IMO. Look at the recession of 2001. Oil prices weren't high. https://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/DCOILWTICO

I work with economic data every day. Oil certainly has some impact on consumer and business spending. But really how well the global economy is doing plays an enormous role in the price of oil as it determines demand. Right now we've got relatively weak global demand and high supply thanks to a lot of U.S. production and Iran coming online among other factors. But the U.S. economy is just too diverse. Regional economies, on the other hand, can certainly be driven by oil.

Agree about the President. Last thing he wants is cheap gas and people buying big SUVs.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

Not really true IMO. Look at the recession of 2001. Oil prices weren't high. https://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/series/DCOILWTICO

I work with economic data every day. Oil certainly has some impact on consumer and business spending. But really how well the global economy is doing plays an enormous role in the price of oil as it determines demand. Right now we've got relatively weak global demand and high supply thanks to a lot of U.S. production and Iran coming online among other factors. But the U.S. economy is just too diverse. Regional economies, on the other hand, can certainly be driven by oil.

Agree about the President. Last thing he wants is cheap gas and people buying big SUVs.

Oil prices were well on the rise by then. In the late 90's I was paying 80 cents for gas. By March 2002, gas topped $2 in my area for the first time in my life, eventually peaking just before the housing bubble burst.

And yes, there are other factors. And oil has a tendacy to drop when the economy is soft (like post housing bubble). But, if it stays low long enough, the economy will boom.

Just in gas alone, the current price is saving me more than $3,300 a year - and that's after taxes, so more like the equivalent of a $5,000 raise. My employer saved enough on shipping last year (compared to 2013) to pay the salaries of 2 people - and we only employ 21. Milk is cheaper, the auto industry broke records & plans to break more. Etc, etc. If oil stays low another 2+ years, things will really pick up.

 

[havaneselover]

Oil prices were well on the rise by then. In the late 90's I was paying 80 cents for gas. By March 2002, gas topped $2 in my area for the first time in my life, eventually peaking just before the housing bubble burst.

And yes, there are other factors. And oil has a tendacy to drop when the economy is soft (like post housing bubble). But, if it stays low long enough, the economy will boom.

Just in gas alone, the current price is saving me more than $3,300 a year - and that's after taxes, so more like the equivalent of a $5,000 raise. My employer saved enough on shipping last year (compared to 2013) to pay the salaries of 2 people - and we only employ 21. Milk is cheaper, the auto industry broke records & plans to break more. Etc, etc. If oil stays low another 2+ years, things will really pick up.

The gas savings has not translated into faster growth in consumer spending. Look at the monthly retail sales report. A lot of us have used the savings to increase our savings (college, retirement, etc.). You can have strong economic growth with high or low oil prices. You can have weak growth or recession with high or low oil prices.

If oil stays low another two years, it probably means the global economy is in the toilet and there will be a lot of bankruptcies. Hopefully there won't be much spillover, but who knows. Investment in nonresidential structures is taking a hit right now because oil is so cheap.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

The gas savings has not translated into faster growth in consumer spending. Look at the monthly retail sales report. A lot of us have used the savings to increase our savings (college, retirement, etc.). You can have strong economic growth with high or low oil prices. You can have weak growth or recession with high or low oil prices.

If oil stays low another two years, it probably means the global economy is in the toilet and there will be a lot of bankruptcies. Hopefully there won't be much spillover, but who knows. Investment in nonresidential structures is taking a hit right now because oil is so cheap.

It hasn't been cheap long enough to have produced major growth.

And history says you don't see major growth with high oil prices. The high oil prices in the 70's & early 80's coincided with stagflation.

The boom during Reagan's 2nd term coincided with much cheaper gas.

Oil shot up under Bush I & we had a mild recession.

Oil was cheap during most of Clinton's time in office and the economy boomed.

Oil started creeping up in 1999, and the economy stalled. Oil continued to climb until 2008 and the economy continued to stall, eventually falling apart - not coincidentally when oil peaked at $147/barrel.


In my lifetime - and I'm crowding 50 - we have never had strong growth AND high oil prices at the same time, save for the occasional blip. It's never lasted, though.

 

[Dakota731]

<edited>

although with regular gas at $1.50/gallon

Ours is much higher here - depends on which state you live and how high they tax energy.

If you want to buy American, buy an electric car

Except all the parts are made in China, Mexico or South America

 

[havaneselover]

It hasn't been cheap long enough to have produced major growth.

And history says you don't see major growth with high oil prices. The high oil prices in the 70's & early 80's coincided with stagflation.

The boom during Reagan's 2nd term coincided with much cheaper gas.

Oil shot up under Bush I & we had a mild recession.

Oil was cheap during most of Clinton's time in office and the economy boomed.

Oil started creeping up in 1999, and the economy stalled. Oil continued to climb until 2008 and the economy continued to stall, eventually falling apart - not coincidentally when oil peaked at $147/barrel.


In my lifetime - and I'm crowding 50 - we have never had strong growth AND high oil prices at the same time, save for the occasional blip. It's never lasted, though.

The Great Recession had nothing to do with oil prices. Oil was high in large part because the global economy was growing like crazy so demand was healthy. When the global economy tanked (due in large part to a massive real estate bubble and banking crisis) prices came down because demand softened. We will have to disagree about what history says about oil's role in economic growth. It's much more complex than what you are stating especially now that the U.S. produces a decent amount.

 

[supersnoop]

The Great Recession had nothing to do with oil prices. Oil was high in large part because the global economy was growing like crazy so demand was healthy. When the global economy tanked (due in large part to a massive real estate bubble and banking crisis) prices came down because demand softened. We will have to disagree about what history says about oil's role in economic growth. It's much more complex than what you are stating especially now that the U.S. produces a decent amount.

I have to disagree. And it might sound like a conspiracy theory.

Gas prices increased dramatically before the housing and credit crisis hit. It was those high gas prices that broke most people's budgets and resulted in them not being able to pay their credit cards or mortgage. Gas prices (and foreign control of energy) was a cause, not result or byproduct of the recession.

The current low oil prices are an attempt for those foreign countries to retain control over the US energy markets by putting alternative producers out of business. Gas prices will stay low long enough for the alternatives to go away, and then we see the same problem again; history repeating itself.