Sunday, February 23, 2025

European Refiners Looking Forward to Receiving Iranian Crude

Lower prices for Iran’s oil mean better margins for refiners, competition for Russia Refineries across Europe are anticipating the return of Iranian crude oil to their operations, and the potentially higher margins as added crude pushes prices down further. Approximately 27.5% of Iran’s crude exports were to Europe in 2011, and refiners are excited to see the crude return, according

Higher Gasoline Costs Sent Consumer Price Index Soaring in April - Oil & Gas 360

United States Gasoline Prices Lowest Since 2009… Except in California

California gas prices $0.95 above national averages Nationally, the average price of a gallon of gas is just $2.77. But the average price in California is $3.72, with average prices in the L.A. area even higher at $4.05/gal, the Automobile Club of Southern California told the LA Times. Problems with refining, along with California’s stricter rules for gasoline, have sent

U.S. Refinery Capacity Hits 18 Million Barrels per Day

U.S. refining capacity rose by 0.2% in 2014 Refining capacity in the United States – measured as operable atmospheric crude distillation unit (CDU) capacity – increased by 0.2% in 2014, reaching a total capacity of 18 MMBOPD, according to the Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) Refinery Capacity Report. The refinery capacity reported for the beginning of 2015 includes expansions that were

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Medium Crude Imports Down 45% from 2014

Bakken, Permian and Eagle Ford replacing Saudi imports of light and medium crudes Imports of medium-grade crude oil to Gulf Coast refineries were down 45% in the first quarter of 2015 compared with the first quarter of 2014, reports the Energy Information Administration (EIA). Medium-grade crude imports fell to 0.8 MMBOPD in Q1’15 from 1.5 MMBOPD the year before. Almost

PBF Purchases 189 MBOPD of Refining Capacity

PBF purchases Chalmette Refinery and other assets for $322 million PBF Energy (ticker: PBF) announced today that its subsidiary has signed an agreement to purchase Chalmette Refining, LLC in New Orleans, Louisiana for $322 million plus working capital including inventory to be valued at closing, according to a company press release.  The purchase includes the refinery, which has a 189

First Quarter Refining Profits: Up 95% from Q1 2014

Higher crack spreads led to better refining margins for Integrated Oils, but can’t offset their upstream loses Integrated oil and gas companies saw much higher profits from their refining operations in the first quarter of this year than in Q1 2014, but it is not enough to offset the effects of the precipitous fall of crude oil prices on the

Demand for Skilled Workers in Petrochemicals Expected to Peak in 2016

Petrochemicals will need in excess of 150 thousand skilled workers by next April Demand for skilled labor in the U.S. chemicals industry is expected to peak in April 2016, according to Daniel Groves, workforce director at the construction Users Roundtable (CURT) and chief executive of data provider Construction Industry Resources. Groves expects that around 156,000 skilled workers will be needed

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Refining Margins at Several Year Highs

Lower crude prices and higher demand for gasoline driving higher margins Gasoline crack spreads in the United States, especially on the U.S. East Coast, have reached several-year highs in recent months. A recent note from the Energy Information Administration (EIA), looked at crack spreads in order to get an idea of refiner profitability. In April 2015, wholesale conventional gasoline in

ConocoPhillips

Shale Gas Creating Renaissance in U.S. Plastics Manufacturing

Shale gas is making U.S. plastic manufacturing competitive globally The shale gas revolution is bringing plastic manufacturing back to the United States and making U.S. refiners more competitive globally, reports the American Chemistry Council (ACC). Due largely to plentiful and affordable natural gas and natural gas liquids from shale formations, U.S. jobs related to plastics manufacturing are expected to grow

If Export Restraints are Removed from U.S. Producers, What can Refiners Expect?

The EIA released a report showing its expectations for the refining sector based on U.S. oil production and whether or not crude oil export laws are reversed How increased production and U.S. export laws might affect refiners has been a topic of considerable debate, so much so in fact that the Energy Information Administration (EIA) decided that not only would

Dakota Prairie Refinery Starting Up

Dakota Prairie Refinery Commences Startup Operations MDU Resources Group, Inc. (MDU) and Calumet Specialty Products Partners, L.P. (CLMT) today announced that the Dickinson, North Dakota-based Dakota Prairie refinery, the first greenfield fuels refinery built in the U.S. in nearly 40 years, has commenced operations. The facility has begun producing diesel fuel and is expected to begin sales of diesel as

Valero Energy, Fueled by Lower Oil Prices, Reports Personal-Best Q1 Earnings

Expects to Significantly Expand its Midstream Business Long Term Valero Energy (ticker: VLO), the largest refiner in the United States with throughput capacity of 2.90 MMBOPD, reported net income of $964 million, or $1.87 per share, in its Q1’15 results on April 28, 2015. The results are a record for VLO’s first quarter operations and are 16% higher than Q1’14