Wednesday, March 23, 2016

Weekly petroleum statistics from EIA:

U.S. crude oil refinery inputs averaged over 15.8 million barrels per day during the week ending March 18, 2016, 176,000 barrels per day less than the previous week’s average.

Refineries operated at 88.4% of their operable capacity last week.

Gasoline production decreased last week, averaging 9.7 million barrels per day. Distillate fuel production decreased last week, averaging over 4.7 million barrels per day.

U.S. crude oil imports averaged 8.4 milli on barrels per day last week, up by 691,000 barrels per day from the previous week. Over the last four weeks, crude oil imports averaged 8.1 million barrels per day, 11.6% ab ove the same four-week period last year.

Total motor gasoline imports (including both finished gasoline and gasoline blending components) last week averaged 415,000 barrels per day. Distillate fuel imports averaged 93,000 barrels per day last week. 

New York Auto Show: I don't know if Tesla showed up, but it did not make the top 5 list. The 5 top stars at the NYC auto show: 

• Acura MDX (2017)
• Nissan GT-R (2017)
• Lincoln Navigator (2017)
• Toyota Highlander (2017)
• Subaru Impreza (2017)

Canada is its own worse enemy, from Platts:

With the current assumption that a crude export pipeline from Alberta to the US Gulf Coast is unlikely to ever be built, never has there been a better opportunity for Canada’s provinces to join hands and hasten efforts to open up oil export outlets along the country’s Pacific and Atlantic coasts.

Be it the recent rejection by the US government of the Keystone XL Pipeline — described by Alberta Premier Rachel Notley as a “kick in the teeth” — or the low-level east-west rivalry between the provinces to get a trans-Canadian oil export pipeline built, consensus building and not antagonism is a discerning aspect of the confederation.

A new issue is, however, brewing between Alberta and British Columbia that, instead of pulling the provinces together to optimize the value of the nation’s crude oil resources, is putting them at loggerheads.

In early March, Alberta’s energy minister Margaret McCuaig-Boyd said that the province would not buy additional electricity from neighbor British Columbia unless the latter lends its support for an oil export pipeline through that province.

The next day Notley said: “We’ve just got to get our product to other markets. We’re not necessarily going to have that much demand for electricity if we can’t find someone to sell our products to.”

Neighbors wanting to talk about new power lines crossing provincial borders need to understand that the issue is tied to inter-jurisdictional product distribution infrastructure, like pipelines to carry bitumen to tidewater.

(Re-posted) ObamaCare:although the reasons for a change in Coca-Cola's business plans had nothing to do with ObamaCare based on information available, one wonders. Coca-Cola's business plan has been in the works for quite some time, but it is now being accelerated out of "fear, anxiety" that it could become a takeover target. But when I see the employee numbers before/after it only makes me think that Coca-Cola is cutting employee costs due to ObamaCare. From today's Wall Street Journal:

Operating margin will jump to 34% from 23% and head count will shrink to 39,000 from 123,000 as capital-intensive factories, warehouses and trucks come off its balance sheet.

Again, for those who missed it: by jettisoning 100,000 employees from their payrolls (think pensions, ObamaCare, OSHA rules, and federal regulations), Coke's margins will jump from 23% to 34%. The employees will still have jobs but their contracts will be re-written and less generous no doubt working for a company with pockets not nearly as deep as Coke's.