This is what happens when green activists want no oil refineries and a ban on oil. They push wind and solar and electric dreams.
New oil refineries must be built. And Trump should work approving them. But Democrats want no new refineries, nuclear reactors, coal, you name it. We have seen so many hectares of farmland go to Obama and Clyburn pushed solar plants.
Emotionalism is easier to sell when people do not see the inner issue.
“New oil refineries must be built“
New refineries no, expand capacity at existing refineries yes, and that has been happening over the last 40 years. The reasons are multiple
1) locals know the value and will work through permitting issues
2) workforce is experienced and can expand from a strong base. Same goes with supporting trades like maintenance and welders etc
3) transportation hub in place: ports, pipelines, rail and existing tankage
4) utilities are in place, power, water, cleanup
5) and expansion will tie to what is lacking in existing ie going toward less favored heavy oil, or increase diesel and jet relative to gasoline
6) it’s the cheaper, lower capital risk
7) you can retire and replace some older, smaller equipment, that is a catastrophe waiting to happen, without shutting down the whole place
8) planning is on-going, designs are already in place on what is the next project to implement. Just hand over the funds
Meanwhile, the rest of the world has been building refineries at a pace and location that doesn’t make sense. For example, and this has emerged in the last 10 years, the US has a huge competitive advantage by tapping low cost natural gas as fuel. It’s the biggest operating expense in a refinery. China and Europe can’t compete economically against it. Yet they’ll all run their refineries flat out, in good times and bad.