Memorial Day 2020 – In the Midst of Uncertainty, Let Us Not Forget Our Fallen...
Memorial Day has traditionally come to signify the end of school and the beginning of summer. It was also a time that signaled the start of the vacation travel season, with most of us eagerly...
View ArticleCanadian Integrated Refiners – Oil markets remain volatile but signs of...
We continue our blog series from the past few weeks covering first quarter earnings reports of the various segments of the petroleum industry, with today’s focus on the Canadian integrated companies....
View Article“Up Around the Bend” – What lies ahead for product demand and refiners’...
Six weeks ago, we published a blog entitled “Up Around the Bend” – What lies ahead for product demand and refiners’ prospects as COVID lockdowns ease?”. In that blog, we discussed some of the...
View Article“Leaving on a Jet Plane” – Prospects for U.S. Jet Fuel Demand Recovery
Last week in this space, we provided our latest view on how quickly overall refined product demand would recover from the pandemic lockdowns (“Up Around the Bend” – What lies ahead for product demand...
View Article“Together in Electric Dreams” – The Outlook for EVs
For the past two weeks, we have been discussing the short-term outlook for petroleum demand. Today, we are focusing on one important longer-term demand threat – Electric Vehicles or EVs. Global EV...
View ArticleRenewable Fuels Growth: What’s driving it and why?
Despite the pandemic, interest in renewable fuels continues to grow. This is largely because government mandates drive its demand, which is expected to continue increasing as carbon-reduction policies...
View ArticleCalifornia Dreamin’ of Feedstocks and Fuels
Last week’s blog touched on the California Low Carbon Fuel Standard (CA-LCFS) program, and the prominent role it occupies in the renewable fuels market. This week, we focus more closely on it. First, a...
View Article2021 RFS
The RFS was established by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and was expanded as part of the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA) of 2007. The 2005 statute is generally referred to as “RFS1” and...
View ArticleJudge orders the Shutdown of DAPL, Energy Transfer’s “Beautiful Boy”
It wasn’t long ago that Kelcy Warren (Chairman and CEO of Energy Transfer) said he was so proud of the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) project that he thought of it as if it were his son. Perhaps this...
View Article2021 RFS Mandate and implications for RIN Bank
The Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) was established by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and was further expanded in 2007 as part of the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA). The RFS program is a...
View ArticleFree Fatty Acids, Biointermediates, and their Futures
The topic of renewable fuel feedstock always seems to generate a high level of interest, and rightfully so; the supply of it controls our ability to reduce GHG emissions. The quality and type of it...
View Article“Sunday Mornin’ [2020] Comin’ Down” – The current Plight of Refiners and What...
By any measure, 2020 has not gone as planned for anybody and this is particularly true for refiners for whom almost nothing seems to have gone right. This point is coming across loud and clear during...
View ArticleDown go the Dividends: Who is safe?
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact across the industry, with companies having had to respond to unprecedented declines in transportation fuel demand and a historic crash in crude oil...
View ArticleDe-Urbanization: The Fall of (Select) Cities and the Rise of Remote Working
The COVID-19 pandemic (and responsive government actions), together with the wave of violent protests and calls to “defund the police” are leading to potentially major shifts in where and how people in...
View ArticleRefinery “Closures”, Renewable Diesel Investments and Regulatory Incentives
In the wake of demand destruction as a result of COVID-19, refiners across the globe have been forced to turn-down rates or in some cases cease production altogether, while at the same time we have...
View Article“Up Around the Bend” – What lies ahead for product demand and refiners’...
Nearly three months ago, we published a blog entitled Part 2 “Up Around the Bend” blog series, discussing the outlook for production demand and refining margins as we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic....
View Article“Up Around the Bend” – What lies ahead for product demand and refiners’...
Last week, we looked primarily at our outlook for petroleum demand and how that will affect the refining industry going forward. This week, we turn our focus to the other major side of the equation...
View ArticleSnapshot LCFS: California Versus Oregon
Both California and Oregon have had low carbon fuel programs for several years now. The California Air Resource Board (CARB) identified the Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) as one of nine items under...
View ArticleSnapshot LCFS: California Versus Oregon
Both California and Oregon have had low carbon fuel programs for several years now. The California Air Resource Board (CARB) identified the Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) as one of nine items under...
View ArticleBiogas Outlook
RNG Growth Began in 2014 On July 2, 2014, the EPA finalized amendments to the RFS program qualifying additional pathways that could be used in producing renewable fuel. Compressed natural gas (R-CNG)...
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