gas prices posts, articles, and infographics

Map of Hybrid/Electric Vehicle Sales Across the US

November 23, 2011 by Tom Konrad
with 408 views

NPR is doing a series looking at automakers’ push to meet the new CAFE standards. Included is this map of hybrid/electric vehicle sales across the US by market: http://api.tiles.mapbox.com/v2/npr.basemap-world,npr.hybrid-sales/mm/zoompan,tooltips,legend,share.html#4/36.65000000000001/-96.96999999999997 I thought it would be interesting... [read more]

Will Energy Determine the 2012 Election?

November 8, 2011 by Geoffrey Styles
with 391 views

A year from today Americans will know who will serve as President from 2013 to 2017. Even though $4 gasoline was still fresh in the minds of voters, energy played only a minor role in the outcome of the 2008 election, overshadowed by two wars and a crippling financial crisis. Will that be the case again in 2012, or will energy loom larger, propelled by its close connection with the economy? Several Republican candidates have already raised energy as a campaign issue, and the administration has repeatedly emphasized the linkages between energy, jobs and taxes. [read more]

Shell May Shut Its Largest Refinery Following Fire

October 4, 2011 by Ee Mien Low
with 646 views

channelnewsasia.com, foxbusiness.com : Shell's fire-hit Pulau Bukom oil refinery may remain shut for at least a month. Shell is tight-lipped about how much money is going up in smoke due to the incident at its biggest refinery. But some analysts said disrupted production would affect regional supplies of Shell's products in the short... [read more]

STUDY: Gasoline Demand Is More Price-Inelastic Than Commonly Thought

October 4, 2011 by Michael Giberson
with 374 views

A working paper from the UC-Berkeley Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics says that the demand for gasoline is more price-inelastic than typically thought. Here is the abstract, which points to publication selection bias as the culprit: One of the most frequently examined statistical relationships in energy economics has... [read more]

Why Haven't Gas Prices Fallen More?

August 29, 2011 by Geoffrey Styles
with 701 views

With the US economy stuck in the doldrums, weakening the demand for oil and its products, and with the fall of at least portions of Tripoli foreshadowing the eventual return of Libyan oil exports to the market, it must seem puzzling that US gasoline prices haven't dropped farther in the last few weeks. As of Monday, the national... [read more]

Keeping Michele Bachmann Honest on Gas Prices

August 22, 2011 by Robert Rapier
with 328 views

Like many of you, I am often unhappy with our political leaders. One thing that annoys me the most is that many will say or do just about anything to get elected. By now, you have surely heard the news that Republican presidential hopeful Michele Bachmann has promised a return to $2/gallon gasoline if she is elected president: [read more]

‘Tis the Season for Oil Company Misinformation

August 1, 2011 by Robert Rapier
with 510 views

In my travels around the globe, I have never been to another country that regards their oil companies as we do here in the U.S. I have actually been in countries where people view their domestic oil companies as a source of national pride. Here in the U.S., the average person on the street views our oil companies as vile, greedy... [read more]

The Strategic Petroleum Reserve Isn't A National Piggy Bank

July 22, 2011 by Robert Rapier
with 313 views

I have covered the reasons for my opposition many times, but the single biggest reason I oppose these sorts of releases is that the fundamental reason for the existence of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) is to provide insurance in case of a supply emergency. Politicians who use the reserve in an attempt to influence gas prices so... [read more]

Energy Crisis Prices Persist

July 22, 2011 by Geoffrey Styles
with 495 views

Watching oil prices is a hard habit to break, once formed. They're always moving up and down, sometimes for obvious reasons and sometimes not. It has probably escaped most observers' notice that the magnitude of this year's price moves has exceeded the total nominal price of oil that prevailed not many years ago, yet without the sort of... [read more]

Is an "Oil Shockwave" America's Biggest Energy Threat?

July 19, 2011 by Silvio Marcacci
with 1,314 views

War games have long been used to prepare the military for battle, but what about the national threat of a global energy crisis? According to an advocacy group called Securing America’s Future Energy (SAFE), Middle East turmoil, a shaky national economy, and heavy dependence on foreign oil have combined to make America’s energy supply “dangerously vulnerable.” [read more]

What America Doesn't Know About Gas Prices

July 7, 2011 by Silvio Marcacci
with 678 views

Most Americans know the price of gasoline better than the cost of almost anything else they buy regularly. But do they know all the factors that go into that price, or even the source of the crude oil used to make their gas? energyNOW! special correspondent Josh Zepps takes an inside look at everything that goes into the price of gas - from the ground to your tank - and explains why crude oil costs so much in the first place, where most of that oil comes from, and why the gas you buy varies from season to season, and place to place. [read more]

Why Do Democrats Want Inexpensive Oil?

June 30, 2011 by Robert Rapier
with 644 views

It seems that nothing quite brings out the silliness in politicians like the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR). As you undoubtedly have now heard, the United States and the International Energy Agency are coordinating to release 60 million barrels of oil to the world markets. The U.S. portion of the release will be 30 million barrels... [read more]

What's The True Cost Of A Gallon Of Gas?

June 29, 2011 by A Siegel
with 853 views

How should we understand the cost of a gallon of gasoline? This is a very serious question with a myriad of layers and implications. The price of gasoline, at the pump, is the most prominent indicator of energy costs for a very large share of humanity. Whether driving a car or taking a bus or even walking on a street, the ‘arm and a... [read more]

Gasoline Could Cost Consumers an Extra $150 Billion in 2011

June 19, 2011 by Geoffrey Styles
with 414 views

A poll reported in this morning's Wall St. Journal (subscription) indicated that more Americans are significantly affected by high gas prices than by rising food prices, falling home values, unemployment or foreclosures. That's a surprising result, considering that transportation fuel only accounts for about 5% of average household... [read more]

Do Oil Consumers And Oil Producers Really Share The Same Goal?

May 31, 2011 by Rod Adams
with 269 views

Saudi Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal told CNN’s Fareed Zakaria that his country shares a common desire with oil consumers. They would both like oil prices to be lower. Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal indicated that the Saudis would like oil to be trading in the range of $70 to $80 per barrel instead of its current market price of... [read more]