I'm saying that with the oil industry crying over lower oil prices, it' a remarkable coincidence that these "unexpected repairs" come about right at the beginning of yet another sell off in oil that is taking prices to multi-year lows....

I'm sure when BP reports their record profits, this won't be brought up

"Experts" say the price will decline once the refinery is back online. Now of course, that assumes that oil hasn't gone back up in price in the mean time.

Yes.

No, it really isn't and it goes back to why I asked you about dates. Do you know what time of year it is?

JFC, donger, are you going to use the summer gas excuse now?

LOL

In May 2007 gasoline prices were higher than after hurricane Katrina wrecked a third of the nation's refining capacity. Gasoline prices are higher than ever before. If we are to believe that high prices are not a result of price fixing or price gouging, then we are actually seeing the result of an imbalance between low stockpiles and increasing summer demand for gasoline.

2007:
Fears new problems at US refineries will constrict gasoline supplies already at unusually low pre-summer levels (May 2007)
A refinery fire in Sweden
Nigerians running wild again this year
Trouble at many of the nation's refineries
US inventory stockpiles at lowest level since 1956
Extended planned refinery maintenance programs
Excuses given in the two previous years (2005-2006) mirror what we are hearing in 2007:
Concern a storm in the Caribbean will become a hurricane and hit petroleum installations in the Gulf of Mexico
Fresh worries Iran will miss a deadline to halt its nuclear program (8-18-06)
Oil fell $2 to below $75 a barrel today after Britain said it had thwarted a plot to blow up aircraft in trans-Atlantic flight. (8-10-06)
BP Plc said it's shutting the Prudhoe Bay oil field in Alaska (8-06-06)
Depletion at some of the world's largest fields including Mexico's Cantarell
Three Filipino oil and gas workers were abducted in southern Nigeria (8-04-06)
Fears that the Israeli-Lebanese conflict could spread to Middle East oil producers = $78.40 per barrel
Fear of Nigerian spies (7-31-06)
Explosions on Nigerian pipelines, Israel's military action, and tensions with Iran = $76 per barrel (7-13-06)
Tension over problems with North Korea cause record high prices (7-10-06)
Strong demand and worries about Iran; record high above $75 a barrel (7-05-06)
Momentum from strong demand and geopolitical worries
World oil prices advanced further as the market focused on tight supplies of US gasoline (6-22-06)
Congress has resisted accessing the billions of barrels' worth of oil and natural gas in our (U.S.) offshore continental shelf (added 6-17-06)
Mixed signals from Iran over a package of incentives offered by the West for it to give up uranium enrichment (added 6-16-06)
Militants kidnapped five Koreans at a natural gas plant operated by Royal Dutch Shell in Nigeria
Iran's supreme leader threatened to disrupt global supplies if the West punishes Tehran over its nuclear program
A refinery fire cut production at a Valero Energy Corp plant on June 1, 2006
An attack on a Nigerian oil rig which included kidnappings
Crude futures rose amid expectations of a spike in motor fuel demand during the summer driving season, and as forecasters warn of hurricane activity in the coming months. A barrel of light crude jumped $1.21 to $72.50 on the New York Mercantile Exchange on 30 May 2006.
President Bush's Blunders some say George Bush added $15 to a barrel of oil Add $15 to the price of each barrel of oil
Concern of new predictions of new hurricanes for 2006
A letter from Iran's president to President Bush failed to move the countries closer to an agreement
Rising resource nationalism in South America have added to oil-market worries
An expected decline in gasoline stocks (note that this excuse was reversed in 2 days as stocks increased)
Bullish buying by investors
A refinery outage in Italy
Supply disruptions in Africa
Tight petroleum supplies amid soaring demand could drive crude oil prices above $100 a barrel by this winter (2006-2007), energy experts warned yesterday.
Speculators and profit takers bid up the market
Bush stops filling oil reserves while experts say refining is the real issue
Changes from MTBE to Ethanol cause refining and delivery problems
Problems continue in Nigera
Concern about meeting demand for fuel as summer approaches (2006)
The Iranian government wants nuclear power, but purchased long range missiles while acting like loose cannons

-- Beginning of excuses for 2005 --
U.S. government reported in November an unexpected decline in oil supplies
Concern about meeting demand for fuel as winter approaches
Concern US refineries aren't recovering fast enough from the hurricane season
Tropical Storm Wilma - Oct 17 2005 - could move in to the Gulf of Mexico
Almost 19 percent of the U.S. total refining capacity is idle
French refiners might sit on the sidelines due to strikes
Fears of inadequate heating oil supplies this winter
Speculation about natural gas shortages
Debate about trade and budget deficits as US buys more fuel overseas
Are they stretching it with this one?
"Natural gas yesterday surged to a record on concern that a tropical storm system developing in the Caribbean Sea may develop into another hurricane that could cut production that has been crippled by two storms in the last month." - from September 28, 2005
And we continue...
Storms have exposed the soft underbelly of the U.S. energy system
U.S. Gulf of Mexico production remained completely shut because of Hurricane Rita
Four refineries remain shut because of damage caused by Katrina
Tropical Storm Rita will impede efforts to restore production in the Gulf of Mexico
Department of Energy said energy costs in the United States for the upcoming winter would be the highest in a decade
Gasoline futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange sent prices 25 percent higher in less than a week - Sep 1, 2005
US production recovered more slowly than expected after Katrina
Eight major refineries are shut down squeezing U.S. refining capacity
Hurricane Katrina appears to be gathering power, causing big problems
Hurricane Katrina damaged platforms and ports
A fire broke out at a Tesoro refinery in Martinez, California
Oil is effected by a superhot, panic-ridden California market
Iran parliament rejects president's choice of oil minister
Tropical Storm Katrina could threaten oil production in the Gulf of Mexico
A fire at a massive refining complex in Venezuela
In Nigeria villagers closed down a pumping facility
A 2 percent slump in US supplies signaled a thirsty market
In Ecuador protesters forced a halt to production
The oil market has not fully convinced itself that more than $60 is sustainable
US stockpile data expected to show a drop in gasoline inventories
Events in the oil-rich Middle East conspire to keep prices high
Nippon Oil Corp. suspended operations after a strong earthquake in Japan
Chevron Corp.'s refinery in El Segundo, California, shutdown for 25 days following a fire
The hot summer helped keep natural gas inventories at worrisomely low levels
ConocoPhillips' Wood River, Ill., refinery, was shut after a thunderstorm caused a power failure
Premcor Inc.'s refinery in Memphis, Tenn., was closed due to a power outage
If sanctioned by the U.S. and U.N., Iran would cut back on oil producing
The hot Chinese economy
Fear of a supply disruption
Rumours of terrorist threats to Saudi refineries
US embassy in Saudi Arabia closed for two days
Iran's decision to restart its nuclear program
Summer is the peak driving season in the US
Bombings in London
Diplomatic showdown over Iran's nuclear program
The recent death of King Fahd
Refinery outages in the United States
It is a product of trading strategies
Dicey conditions in oil producing nations
Weather related problems
Continued worldwide high demand
Strong economic growth in the US, which consumes a quarter of the world's fuel
Excessive fuel use by the US military, which use a third of US supplies
An explosion at the BP plant in Texas City, near Houston
Aging plants that are having difficulty maintaining output at high levels
Major oil reserves are becoming harder to find
Major oil reserves are more expensive to exploit
Strong demand from India
Lack of OPEC to increase oil production
Canada, which supplies oil to the US, recently signed a deal with China
Insurgents have not halted their attacks against the US military in Iraq
Insurgents have not halted their attacks against the new government in Baghdad
Anxiety over terrorism and the Iraq war
Some refineries have had to cut back production because they've been running so hard
Decreasing production in the North Sea
There are only about 1.5 million barrels of spare daily production that can be used in case of emergency
Rebel attacks on pipelines in India
A Sunoco refinery fire in Philadelphia
The threat of hurricanes
A provision in the energy bill signed by President Bush removes protections relative to MTBE
Without MTBE refiners have less flexibility in reformulating gasoline, which could drive prices up
The dollar is declining in relation to other benchmark currencies
No giant new oil fields have been found in twenty years
Critical items such as steel casing and tubing are now in short supply and expensive
Drilling and operating costs have soared
Hurricane Dennis, July 11, 2005
Hurricane Emily
Concerns that demand was straining the world's capacity to pump and refine crude oil
Nigerian rebels have warned oil companies to shut down production in the Niger delta
If Chinese demand were comparable to US demand China would consume more than what is currently being produced
Yukos bankruptcy where Yukos is a major supplier of upwards of 2% of the world's oil supply
Chavez recall vote in unstable Venezuela
Darfur's rebels and supposedly Khartoum backed militias, where the real prize is the oil wealth of the Sudan
Fear of lower US petroleum reserves
OPEC's lack of spare capacity means they can no longer control the market
Sabotaged pipelines in Iraq have added to the escalating price of oil
Fear of cold weather in the winter of 2005 - 2006
Fear that global oil reserves will be entirely depleted by 2038
Concerns over Iran’s decision to resume uranium-conversion activities

Unless you think supply and demand aren't factors...

It's actually a combination of three things:

1) It's peak driving season, so demand is very high. 6% greater than last year, in fact.

2) Since it's summer, refiners are still dealing with the mandated summer blends.

3) To try to meet demand, refineries are operating at near 100%. When that happens, more things break.

So, I suppose it could be a big BP conspiracy to actually intentionally limit the product they produce during peak driving season... Or...

:spock:

LMAO

Jesus indeed, Pete.

U.S. oil futures on Friday sank below $40 a barrel for the first time since the Great Recession and were on track for an eighth straight weekly loss—the longest streak of weekly losses since 1986.

Prices sank under $40 intraday shortly after data from Baker Hughes BHI, -2.43% showed that the number of active U.S. oil drilling rigs rose 2 to 674 as of Aug. 21.

Weaker-than-expected Chinese manufacturing data and a sharp declines in the U.S. stock market also spurred worries about the outlook for energy demand.

After tapping a low of $39.86 a barrel, WTI crude for delivery in October CLV5, -2.95% remained down $1.39, or 3.4%, at $39.93 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Based on the most-active contract, prices were set for their lowest settlement since February 2009 and are on track for a weekly loss of 5.7%, their eighth weekly decline in a row.

Crude plummeting today. Now well below $40 at $38.90, down 3.83% right now.

If I don't see gas prices at or below $2 here in the next few weeks I'm paying Donger a visit

For what purpose? I'm not very social.

He would like to share an adult beverage with you in your garage.

$3.15 yesterday at the Burbank Costco. I got caught in the gas line and was stuck for 22 minutes.

$4.29 at the Chevron nearest my home.

LMAO

LOL, Christ

Gas still hovering around 2.60/gal here in KC. There has been no substantive drop in prices even though crude is going down faster than a drunken homecoming queen.

Tell me more about how broke dick our refineries are, again.

See 168.

Based on what happened 7 years ago, if crude keeps falling, and these refineries get their heads outta their asses, we should see gasoline fall to around $1.50.

Sub-$2.00 yes.

One would hope, at the very least.

It was around $1.75 in my area(SW Ohio) back in Feb.

And, just to put things in perspective and to add to #168:

The national average for a gallon of regular unleaded was $2.60 a gallon this weekend—down from nearly $3.45 at this time last year, according to AAA.

Yeah, it's nuts.

The Chevron is less than a half a mile from my home yet it's consistently one dollar more than Costco Burbank, which is 3.7 miles (and only takes 25 minutes to get there!).

I should have taken a picture yesterday of the gas lines. They have either 10 or 12 pumps and the cars were 12 deep in every lane. It took ten minutes just to get in line.

WTF? $1.14 difference? They selling super gas or something? Pure gas, no ethanol??

And look, the ****ing kids are back in school. Summer is over, let's shitcan this "summer blend" nonsense.

Well gee...considering oil is down $55(ish) from where it was a year ago......

I see some near you at $4.79. Heh.

It must be a REAL bitch to deliver the fuel the extra 3.7 miles to the neighborhood Chevron!

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/gouging

90068? I'm not surprised. It's going to get worse here, as the four new hotels just down the street from me are completed, as well as all of the new mixed-use buildings, Columbia Square, etc. About $10 billion in new construction the next 3 years.

The Chevron station is on Cahuenga, just before the 101 North & South on ramps, so they can seemingly charge a fortune for gas.

That isn't gouging.

Already trading at six-year lows on a prolonged slump, U.S. crude fell $2.21 to finish at $38.24 per barrel. Oil hadn't closed below $40 since February 2009, although it briefly traded below that level on Friday. Monday's closing price was the lowest since Feb. 18, 2009.

Pretty good push back today. Now at $39.50, up 3.29%

Anyone else's state take advantage of the lower gas prices to push through a massive gas tax increase?

Not that I've noticed here in Ohio. Enjoy the 'Left' coast. :D

When the second half of the increase kicks in, we will have the second highest gas tax in the nation, behind only Pennsylvania (lol- "left coast").

Yay us.

Well, so much for that...

Crude up almost 7% right now at $41.26

Gas down around $.40 in my area the last few weeks. $2.59.

The BP refinery in Indiana came back online at 100% on Tuesday.

Thanks, I was wondering about that.

Yep

http://www.chicagotribune.com/busine...825-story.html

I was on a Conf Call earlier this morning and we were discussing WTI pricing. While it's nice to see the price "pick up", there's going to be a lot of driller's on the sidelines until they see some sustainability above $50/BBL. We heard Concho Resources, the largest independent driller in the Permian Basin (WTX), just made the decision to lay down all their rigs. If true, that's a pretty big signal to the rest of the market.

$1.99 in areas around OKC.

Just saw $1.99 here.

Whoa...

West Texas Intermediate crude for delivery in October jumped $3.96, or 10.3%, to settle at $42.56 a barrel.

Interesting how gas is averaging 2.75 gal with oil at 39 dollars a barrell but when gas was at 1.75 about a year and half ago a barrel of oil was much higher. It's all a sham IMO.

See 168.

Year and a half? It was that low in January of this year. Unless you're talking about the National average.

Still pushing back. Now $44.45, up 4.44% right now.

Sweet. Gas prices to rise 10%

Conveniently....

I wouldn't think so. We're still dealing with summer blends and very high demand, both of which will stop in a month or so.

Gasoline is already down $0.13 in the last week.

QT seems to price theirs around here in relation to the big companies pay days too. Always goes up right before pay day.

well well well.....look at that....oil is back up $10 from it's low....and it started going up right as the refinery came back on line.

I noticed last night a .12 difference between 2 QT's not even 5 miles apart from each other.

:spock:

Today's increase, which is huge, is because of the report which has shown a decrease in our production and OPEC's recent statement.

You could do the same thing with comparable home prices.

I used at $ .30/gallon off coupon from KMart at BP yesterday, got gas for $2.13/gallon. Filled up my Subie and the Cougar plus a 5-gallon gas can for the lawn mower. Score!

JFC Donger STFU.....

I didn't realize gas was priced based on things like the local school district.....

It isn't. But it is based partly on the location of the station.

thank you for captioning the obvious....

Sure thing. I wasn't claiming it had anything to do with school districts.

Now, do you dispute that there are very good and valid reasons for gas stations within a few miles of each to have different prices?

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil futures soared on Monday for a third consecutive day, rising more than 8 percent, as a downward revision of U.S. crude production data and OPEC's readiness to talk with other producers helped extend the biggest price surge in 25 years.

U.S. crude oil prices have skyrocketed more than $10 a barrel in three days, erasing the month's declines as a series of relatively small-scale supply disruptions and output risks prompted bearish traders to take profits on short positions, which had been at near record highs a week ago.

On Monday, prices fell initially but reversed course mid-morning to accelerate into the close, extending gains to more than the 20 percent mark that often signals a bull market. Even so, few were prepared to call a definitive end to the slump.

"Sharp gains over the past three trading sessions were driven by a combination of short covering and chart-readers again looking to call a bottom falsely," Citi said in a report, saying that prices may yet test new lows before year's end.

Brent (LCOc1) October futures rose $4.10, or 8.2 percent, to settle at $54.15 a barrel, with volumes relatively muted by a British public holiday.

U.S. crude (CLc1) gained $3.98, or 8.8 percent, to settle at $49.20 a barrel, taking three-day gains to 27.5 percent, the most over three days since August 1990. In dollar terms, it is the biggest three-day gain since February 2011.

While some analysts have been warning of a rebound in prices after a one-third slump since late June, most have been shocked by the whiplash of the past few days, and wondered whether it was an overreaction to relatively mild triggers.

On Monday, some cited a commentary in the latest OPEC Bulletin publication suggesting the group may be increasingly willing to talk to other producers about curbing output as a factor, even though it was broadly in line with previous comments. There has been no indication this summer that core Gulf OPEC members are pushing for more talks.

"As the organization has stressed on numerous occasions, it stands ready to talk to all other producers. But this has to be on a level playing field. OPEC will protect its own interests," according to the report.

The rally was also fueled by revised U.S. government figures showing that domestic production in the first half of the year was lower than initially reported. Even so, the data was in line with the overarching narrative of an industry in decline.

The Energy Information Administration said its new survey-based output data showed the United States pumped a hair below 9.3 million barrels per day in June, down by 100,000 bpd from a revised May figure. June figure was also nearly 250,000 bpd below what the EIA had estimated a few weeks ago.

This is your fault isn't it?

No.

I don't believe you.

I don't work in the industry, or have any fiscal interest or power in it. So, again, no. I had nothing to do with it.

Generally speaking, yes. A .12 difference? .02 or .03 cents no, .12 yeah.

Well, all you have to do is look at the Gas Buddy maps. You'll see plenty of deltas even greater than $0.12 within a few miles of each other. Like I've said, there's a station down the street that is always $0.30 higher than two a few miles down the road.

I think you're just covering up your identity on here so no one knows that you're really the CEO of Exxon Mobil. :tinfoil:

Another crazy day. Crude down 7.52% at $45.50

Layoffs continue to rise, as oil tanks.

Price drop in my area of .07 cents today.

Layoffs where?

[QUOTE=WilliamTheIrish;11698537]Layoffs where?[/ Since crude prices began tumbling last year, energy companies have announced plans to lay off more than 100,000 workers around the world. At least 91,000 layoffs have already materialized, with the majority coming in oil-field-services and drilling companies, according to research by Graves & Co., a Houston consulting firm.

How many in the U.S?

But I Don’t Want to Cut Production!

Saudi Oil Minister, Ali al-Naimi, said this past December that OPEC will not cut production, even if oil reaches $20 per barrel. It seems clear that OPEC, or at least most OPEC nations, are prepared to ride it out. However, at least one OPEC member, Venezuela, a country which derives 95% of its export revenue from oil, would prefer a production reduction sooner than later. However, that’s apparently not going to happen. What would result if oil prices remain low for an extended period? Companies which were profitable at $100, $80, $60, etc., would no longer be able to turn a profit. This would lead to massive layoffs in the oil industry, up to 250,000 workers, half of which would be in Texas. In addition, many regional banks in the affected areas would suffer due to a rise in loan defaults. Low oil prices would also have a negative impact on other industries such as hotels, housing, restaurants, etc. In short, there would be a ripple effect which would outweigh the benefits realized from lower gasoline prices. What will the oil industry look like after the fact?

More job cuts announced
NYSE3:58 PM EDT ConocoPhillips says it's cutting 10 percent of jobs AP 8 mins ago ConocoPhillips to cut global workforce by 10%, including more than 500 jobs in Houston MarketWatch q 25 mins ago More. NEW YORK (AP) -- Energy company ConocoPhillips says it is cutting around 1,810 jobs, or 10 percent of its workforce, following a plunge that took oil prices to their lowest levels in years. The biggest proportion of the job cuts will be in North America, the company said Tuesday. ConocoPhillips plans to eliminate more than 500 jobs in Houston, where it is based. In a news release, ConocoPhillips said it's making the cuts because the energy industry is in a "dramatic downturn." ConocoPhillips has already cut 1,000 jobs this year and had 18,100 employees on June 30. Oil prices have plunged because of a supply glut that built up as production increased and growth in the global economy was slower than expected. The health of China's economy, the second-largest in the world, is a dominant concern. In response to falling oil prices almost all energy companies have either cut spending on exploration or cut jobs, often both, and many have seen big drops in their stock prices. ConocoPhillips said in July that it lost $179 million in the second quarter because of the drop in oil prices. It said it was preparing for a period of lower and more volatile prices and also pared its spending forecasts. The company said Tuesday it is reducing spending and paring back deep water exploration work, but job cuts were also needed to make it stronger and more competitive. ConocoPhillips stock declined $1.64, or 3.3 percent, to $47.51 in afternoon trading as the markets slumped. The company's shares have fallen 42 percent over the last year and are trading at their lowest prices in almost five years. U.S. oil is trading around six-year lows. After a big three-day rebound, the price of U.S. oil fell 8 percent on Tuesday to close at $45.41 on weak manufacturing data from China.

Scared fellow

Welp, better them than me.

Schlumberger cuts another 11,000 jobs in wake of oil crash

Posted on April 16, 2015 | By Collin Eaton
HOUSTON – Oil field services firm Schlumberger announced Thursday it plans to ax another 11,000 workers, kicking off what could be a second major wave of layoffs across the oil industry.


The move will bring Schlumberger’s layoffs up to 20,000 employees, roughly 15 percent of its workforce, since it began paring back its payroll earlier this year to cope with low oil prices. The nine-month oil slump has cost the energy industry more than 120,000 jobs so far, according to oil field staffing firm Swift Worldwide Resources.

Oil equipment companies have been forced to fine-tune their workforce as they promise oil companies up to 20 percent in price reductions for rental tools, equipment and other services, said James Wicklund, an analyst at Credit Suisse.

Wicklund said it’s likely another wave of layoffs will sweep through the service industry after this year’s first in recent months, when major players announced more than 40,000 workers would be tossed from the oil-tool suppliers. It’s even possible a third wave will take place in the third quarter, albeit smaller than the first two.

Schlumberger’s workforce peaked in the third quarter of 2014 with 126,000 employees. Spokesman Joao Felix said the reductions are in progress and should be completed in the second quarter.

Schlumberger, based in Houston, Paris and the Hague, said it took a $390 million charge in the first quarter related to the job cuts and a company leave-of-absence program. It blamed the “severe fall” in North American oil field activity as U.S. producers parked hundreds of drilling rigs and cut billions of dollars in spending.

The firm, which is the world’s biggest oil field services provider, said its first-quarter revenues fell to $10.2 billion, down 9 percent from the same January-March period last year. The figure was off by 19 percent compared to the fourth quarter of 2014, a sign that the oil crunch hit sales harder in the new year.