Crude oil prices staged a recovery of sorts yesterday (January 21, 2016) after a crushing first two weeks of the year. But even if this proves to be the turning point, a lot of damage has been done to crude and refined product prices along the way. Jet fuel is a case in point. The U.S. Gulf Coast spot price for kerosene-type jet fuel closed on Wednesday (January 20, 2016) at $0.78/Gal - the lowest it’s been since September 2003, and barring a dramatic recovery in crude oil prices, the refined petroleum product, that is mostly used for aviation and by the military, will remain cheap this year. That’s good news for the airlines and, one would hope, for air travelers too. But it’s bad news for refiners because of narrowing jet margins over crude oil. Today, we examine the global market for jet fuel, and how it’s affecting U.S. refiners.
Daily Energy Blog
The Colonial System is the largest refined products pipeline in the U.S. and delivers as much as 2.7 MMb/d from Gulf Coast refineries to destinations up the East Coast as far as New York. The southern section of the pipeline has been running full for over three years – leading Colonial to apportion space to shippers. A desire to gain shipper support to expand the pipeline led Colonial to propose new tariff clauses limiting trading practices that have developed around apportionment such as the sale of shipper history. Earlier this month (December 3, 2015) the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) postponed the latest Colonial tariff proposal pending a user conference to resolve differences between the pipeline and shippers on these issues. Today we explain the oddities of line space and shipper history trading.
While recent analysis has raised concerns crude oil pipelines are running half empty the opposite is true for many of the nations’ refined product distribution pipes. Take the huge Colonial Pipeline system that delivers as much as 2.7 MMb/d of refined products from Gulf Coast refineries to destinations up the East Coast as far as New York. The southern stretch of the pipeline from Pasadena near Houston to Greensboro, NC has been running full since 2012 - meaning that shipper volumes are subject to rationing or apportionment. Today we start a two-part series explaining why the Colonial pipeline is so congested and how it operates.
The New York market for residential and commercial heating oil is traditionally tight in the winter months when demand exceeds local production and supplies are supplemented from storage and inflows/imports from outside the region. Coming into winter this year inventory levels were above normal for the time of year and market prices are in contango (a condition where future prices are higher than today) – encouraging further storage. Today we explain how the result is an extension of traditional seasonal storage trade opportunities and a shortage of available inventory capacity.
Only a few short years ago the double punch of fuel efficiency and ethanol mandates had put U.S. gasoline demand on the ropes. But in the past year demand has jumped by 0.5 MMb/d (per data from the Energy Information Administration - EIA). This surge in demand – presumably driven by cheaper prices – has kept refineries running full pelt this summer. Today we discuss the fall and rise of gasoline demand.
The U.S. energy production renaissance isn’t just changing where we get our crude oil and natural gas from, it’s forcing major shifts in the domestic oil refining sector. Gulf Coast, East Coast and Midwest refineries that used to depend heavily on foreign oil are turning to domestic sources, refiners’ ability to process very light U.S. crude is being stretched, and traditional pipeline flow patterns—for crude and refined products alike--are being up-ended. Today, we continue our look at fast-changing petroleum products markets and the infrastructure that supports them.
The boom in U.S. oil and natural gas production has grabbed the headlines the last few years. What shouldn’t be forgotten, though, is that Americans depend on refined petroleum products like gasoline, diesel and jet fuel—not crude—to get from Point A to Point B, and that in some parts of the country, especially the Northeast, fuel oil—not natural gas or electricity—remains the space-heating fuel of choice. Transporting large volumes of petroleum products from refinery to consumer is a monumental and complicated task, a mission accomplished primarily by a still-growing, ever-evolving network of pipelines and storage facilities. Today, we begin a new series on how gasoline, distillate (diesel and heating oil), and jet fuel get to where they’re needed.
Fuel oil demand has been declining for years on dry land – under attack by regulators anxious to reduce sulfur emissions. New international regulations introduced in January of this year are designed to further reduce sulfur emissions from ship engines burning marine fuel oil (“bunkers”) at sea. The new regulations have had an immediate impact on the market for 1% sulfur fuel oil. Most affected ship owners are now using more marine gasoil in coastal zones. Today we examine how the new regulations have impacted fuel oil markets.
In January 2015 new international regulations came into force that reduced the permitted sulfur content in ships “bunker” fuel in Northern European and North American coastal regions. The change has required vessels travelling in those zones to use more expensive fuels or install scrubbers to remove sulfur. The changeover was expected to cause a sharp increase in shipping costs but as we discuss in today’s blog, so far the impact has been far less painful than expected, at least so far.
Freezing weather along the Atlantic Coast has disrupted refinery operations threatening supplies of refined products – in particular distillates – in an already tightly balanced market. The resultant spike in heating oil prices has encouraged European traders to ship cargoes to New York – a reversal of flow patterns seen in recent years. Today we look at northeast distillate fundamentals and explain why European imports are headed across the pond.
Arnold Schwarzenegger said “Hasta la vista, baby” to the governor’s office in Sacramento four years ago, but his 2007 executive order establishing a low-carbon standard for transportation fuels is only now starting to have a real effect on California refineries. Some refiners say the rule aimed at reducing “life-cycle” greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation fuel sector 10% by 2020 is unrealistic and could result in refinery closings and gasoline and diesel shortages. Others say California’s goal is achievable. Today, we consider the Golden State’s low-carbon fuel standard (LCFS) and what it may mean for refiners.
Many in the Northeast are digging out from what turned out to be a typical snowstorm – not a “Superstorm”. Thanks to worse crises in the past, however, a federal Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve was set up in 2000 and--thanks to Superstorm Sandy--federal and New York gasoline strategic reserves were put in place much more recently. The winter propane crisis of 2013-14 also sparked talk of a possible strategic reserve for propane. The theory behind establishing these stockpiles is that in markets that depend heavily on steady, reliable flow of energy products it’s important to have a cushion, a squirreled-away supply to avoid the price spikes and near-panic that can follow the words, “Sorry folks, we’re all out.” Today we examine what’s been done, how it’s worked, and what might be next.
One positive element to the oil price crash is that consumers are paying less at the pump for their gasoline. Of course it is natural that prices at the pump don’t fall as fast as they do in spot or futures markets – there is a lag – usually measured in days. However, while average retail gas prices have fallen over $1/Gal in the past year – more or less in line with spot and futures markets, it seems that changes to diesel prices at the pump have lagged further behind refinery prices. The result is that retail buyers filling their diesel truck at the pump have benefited far less from the oil price windfall than gasoline powered vehicle owners – at least so far. Today we review the data.
Vacuum gas oil or VGO is one of those mystery products talked about by refiners but barely understood by those of us that are not engineers. However it is an important intermediate feedstock that can increase the output of valuable diesel and gasoline from refineries. Lighter shale crudes such as Eagle Ford can produce VGO material direct from primary distillation. Today we shed some light on this semi-finished refinery product.
Increased refined product exports from US Gulf refineries are being driven by diesel refining margins but a lot of by-product gasoline is being produced as a result. Domestic demand for diesel and gasoline has declined over the past 5 years. Fortunately for refiners there is strong demand for diesel and gasoline in Latin America as well as for diesel in Europe. Important cost advantages stemming from the shale revolution are helping Gulf Coast refiners secure these markets against international competitors. Today we conclude our analysis of booming Gulf Coast exports.
