Diesel Shortages Loom

Watching the supply chain: 

US diesel supplier warns companies to prepare for shortages, higher prices for consumers

Alexandra RossOctober 31, 2022  in LocalToday.News

Josh Yoder, owner of Yoder Farms, says he spends $1,500 a day on a tractor while diesel costs are skyrocketing.

Fuel supplier Mansfield Energy is taking steps to prepare for a diesel shortage on the East Coast of the United States and is issuing an advisory to companies relying on the fuel to plan rather than panic.

Last week, Mansfield Energy hoisted a red flag on the impending diesel fuel shortage in the US southeastern region, speculating that it could be due to “weak pipeline ship economies” and historically low reserve supply.

NEW JERSEY, USA – MAY 11: An aerial view of the Phillips 66 Oil Refinery is seen on May 11, 2022 in Linden, New Jersey, United States. () (Photo by Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images / Getty Images)

On a normal day, East Coast markets stockpiled 50 million barrels, but less than 25 million barrels are available right now.

Also read: US diesel supplier warns companies to prepare for shortages, higher prices for consumers

“A tight supply of diesel will drive up prices, which will eventually make it too expensive for some people,” the company said in a press release on Monday. “High prices will lower demand enough to balance it with limited supply.”

FUEL COMPANY ISSUES DIESEL SHORTAGE WARNING, SAYS ‘RAPID DEVELOPMENT’ CONDITIONS

Mansfield warned consumers may feel pain at the pump in the US economy, but supply will still be available for businesses that rely on diesel to operate.

“That’s not to say there won’t be occasional situations where there’s a real physical shortage of product,” the company said. “Some cities could get by on diesel for a few days, at least at the terminal level. But the fuel supply chain is dynamic and suppliers will join forces to fill supply gaps.” ... ' 

Sustainable, Efficient Use Plastics

Use of plastics is a big deal in petroleum use. 

Sustainable and efficient innovations for the plastics industry

Press release / October 06, 2022

At the world’s largest trade fair for the plastics and rubber industry, 14 Fraunhofer units have adopted the “We know plastics” slogan and will be showcasing innovative, sustainable and efficient approaches, solutions and developments for plastics processing. From October 19 to 26, 2022, the topics of circular economy, digital transformation, climate protection and functionalization will take center stage at Booth SC01 in Hall 7.

Shortages of raw material, competition and the lack of skilled workers are among the challenges that the manufacturing industry is currently facing. Researchers are therefore working on energy-efficient and resource-efficient processes for the manufacturing of the future.

Circular economy: reusable transport packaging for food shipments

Circular economy represents the greatest field of action for the plastics and rubber industry. The circular economy of plastics concerns their entire life cycle — from product design, material selection and additives, the circular business model and traceability to added value for customers.

Using reusable transport packaging for B2C food shipping, the Fraunhofer Cluster of Excellence Circular Plastics Economy CCPE will showcase its research results and demonstrate solution approaches for circular products. The demonstrator “reusable transport box” combines the potential of circular plastic compounds with innovative manufacturing processes for component production. Newly developed PLA-based monomaterial approaches, bio-based foams with functional additives and odor-optimized recyclates open up promising design opportunities for the realization of circular product designs.  ... ' 

The way that Crude Costs Influence Retail Prices

Costs Interacting in many ways. 

Gas Prices Raise Costs In 8 Surprising Ways

Bryan Pearson in CustomerThink 

There’s a reason the price of chewing gum is up 7% from last year, and it’s not all related to supply and demand. It turns out that chewing gum is a crude habit, regardless of personal opinion.

The average 42-gallon barrel of oil historically has produced nearly 20 gallons of gasoline and four gallons of jet fuel, according to Earth Science Week. That leaves 18 gallons for other uses, from making plastics and paint to asphalt and ammonia. And yes, to make some candies and gum.

Many of these other uses for petroleum affect the operating costs of retailers and the brands they carry well beyond the length of a gas pump. From product ingredients to the containers that carry the products to the light needed to read the labels, petroleum and natural gas are necessary through virtually every step of the path to purchase. 

Fuel For Thought: 6 Ways Crude Boosts Retail Prices

Thousands of everyday products spring from petroleum today, thanks to chemists who have been – for more than a century – exploring new uses for it. So when the price of a barrel nears $100, the ripple effect is extensive. Here are six ways through which the ripples reach consumers in the retail industry.  ... 

Cyber Security in Oil and Gas

 Already broadly attacked, examples below. 

Oil and Gas Companies Must Act Now on Cybersecurity      Via Siemens

August 13, 2021, Oil and Gas Companies Must Act Now on Cybersecurity

The World Economic Forum’s Cyber Resilience in the Oil and Gas Industry: Playbook for Boards and Corporate Officers Provides a New Blueprint to Secure Critical Infrastructure, the most personally disruptive incident in recent memory came in May 2021 with the ransomware attack that shut down a major U.S. oil and gas pipeline responsible for supplying nearly half of the East Coast’s petroleum. But for global energy industry leaders – and the oil, gas and utility sectors in particular – this is another incident in a series of cyber attacks on critical infrastructure in the increasingly harried digitally connected energy ecosystem that requires an urgent solution.

The energy sector is no stranger to cyber attacks. For many American families and businss Navigating big challenges, from the NotPetya cyber attack on a Ukrainian utility in 2017 that shut down much of the country’s power grid, to the attack on the Colonial Pipeline in 2021, is a responsibility that now falls on the energy sector’s top executives and board members. These leaders need to mitigate cyber risk in a sector undergoing a digital revolution and is now frequently targeted for geopolitical purposes and financial gain by cyber criminals. While governments around the world develop new policies, norms and consequences for future cyber attacks, oil and gas executives and board members cannot wait on government to come to a geopolitical détente, issue new regulations or aid in efforts to secure critical energy systems.

Instead, CEOs and board members must draw from their decades of expertise in integrating energy assets with operational technology (OT) and leveraging information technology (IT) networks to reduce cyber risk across their hyperconnected operating environments. For decades, oil and gas companies have pursued productivity gains by linking physical energy assets with OT control systems and IT networks. That trend continues today with energy organizations seeking big data, artificial intelligence (AI), and automation solutions to reduce costs, improve efficiency and help reduce emissions. Throughout this process, industry executives have also pioneered key management principles and risk-based approaches to securing the technologies and processes that serve as the foundation for their hyperconnected industrial Internet of Things (IoT) business model.  ... '