Bill Aims to Encourage New Refinery Building

GOPUSA ^ | September 23, 2005 | Susan Jones

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

(CNSNews.com) -- Rep. Joe Pitts, a Pennsylvania Republican, has introduced a bill intended to speed the process of building more oil refineries in this country, something that would boost the supply and possibly lower the price of gasoline.

Two major hurricanes have temporarily reduced America's oil refining capacity by as much as a third, at a time when world demand for oil has boosted prices to unprecedented levels for American motorists.

Rep. Pitts' bill calls on the Bush administration to identify three U.S. military bases slated for closure where oil refineries could be located. The plan, said Pitts, would eliminate one of the hurdles companies face - finding land -- before building a new refinery.

"Our ability to refine oil and supply gas to consumers has not kept pace with demand for gasoline," Pitts said in a press release.

"That's because we have not built a new refinery in more than thirty years. This is a driving factor in the level and volatility of gas prices. No matter how much additional crude oil is made available, we simply do not have the capacity to refine it. But experts say just one new refinery would make a significant dent in gas prices here at home."

Pitts is among those who say that too many regulations and skyrocketing litigation costs discourage the construction of new refineries.

"While we need to pass a comprehensive bill to streamline these regulations, there is one thing the federal government can offer right now: land. If we set aside unused military bases for new refinery construction it could eliminate several steps and lead to several new refineries," he said.

Pitts' legislation would give the secretaries of Defense and Energy 90 days to identify three military sites that would be suitable for refinery construction.

Once identified, that land would be set aside for two years and reserved exclusively for oil refinery construction. After that time, the land could be sold or otherwise used as the military sees fit.

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[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

This bill, at first blush, sounds like a good deal. If the name or number of it had been reported, I would have looked it up in Thomas and posted the text for all to see. Unfortunately, that's not the case.

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

PING!

Let's git 'er done!

[conservatism_IS_compassion]

Government regulation preventing construction of refineries increases gasoline prices. Repeal those regs.

[GOP]

This bill will never pass. It makes too much sense.

[lilylangtree]

"possibly lower the price of gasoline"

Statement doesn't build confidence.

[Cobra64]

Let's git 'er done!

The industry should have done this years ago. It takes YEARS to get a refinery built and about a few billion dollars in capital investment. The state and federal governments have an amazing ability to thwart building refineries.

Now, all of a sudden, some folks are waking up. *rolling eyes*

BTW, my wife worked for Texaco Oil for thirty years in their World headquarters in NY. She's been preaching to me for years that we need to build more refineries. She bought crude on the spot market and part of the challenge was the distribution logistics to what where, and when the crude would be shipped for refining.

[Blessed]

This is almost as goofy as some of the pronouncements made by the moonbats on various subjects.A refinery needs to be located close to a seaport to receive oil tankers.Perhaps this guy can identify 3 military bases that meet this requirement and are being closed.

[Robe]

Pass a law that requires each state to build a 1 refinery and 1 nuclear power plant... if ya' don't build 'em you're cut off from the national power grid/pipelines.that should take care of that...
never happen though

[Robe]

"A refinery needs to be located close to a seaport to receive oil tankers" ............


Thats why they're located where they are....in the early days we didn't have the technology to pump long distances...
now we do....
they need to be located inland and dispersed..
with excess capacity to be brought on line if other sites are incapacitated

[Angry_White_Man_Syndrome]

If this were true, then why do we have refineries in Tulsa, OK and in IL, KY, and Montana? They can build pipeline that can go from coast to coast. Tankers are only used to import oil from overseas and Alaska.

[Blessed]

>If this were true, then why do we have refineries in Tulsa, OK and in IL, KY, and Montana? <

These states are where domestic oil fields are located.They are refining all that is being produced domesticly.There has been less investment in domestic oil wells than refineries in the last 20 years.

[Mogollon]

"A refinery needs to be located close to a seaport to receive oil tankers" ............

Not necessarily. The permits have been approved to build a new refinery in a tiny little town called Weldon Arizona which is out in the desert east of Yuma.

They will be receiving Mexican oil from a pipeline from Sonora, Mexico when the refinery is built.

[deport]

A refinery needs to be located close to a seaport to receive oil tankers.

---

That is certainly helpful but not an absolute. Pipelines can play into the mix both for delivery of the crude or delivery of refined product.

I think it was Kuwait that offered just the other day to build the first new refinery in the US in some 30 years. Don't know what the outcome of the offer will be.
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/nation/3359279

[TChris]

Does the bill provide for the ban of the Sierra club? That's the biggest hurdle to overcome in the development of new refineries, quickly followed by the EPA (thank you very much, Mr. Nixon... NOT)

[Bulwark]

Does the bill provide for the ban of the Sierra club? That's the biggest hurdle to overcome in the development of new refineries, quickly followed by the EPA

Actually, the biggest hurdle to overcome in the development of new refineries is the oil companies themselves, who have no interest in building new refineries.

[colette]

A refinery needs to be located close to a seaport to receive oil tankers.

What about if the oil comes from thermal depolymerization of garbage, trash, industrial waste, etc.?