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The low prices in 2020 were due to demand destruction from the lockdowns and the massive fall off of vehicle miles driven due to the pandemic policies at the time. Had demand stayed the same 2020 prices would have been in the $2.30 range nation wide. The fall below $2 was 100% due to demand destruction from the pandemic. This is easily verifiable by looking at the total fuel consumed over that period vs the year before or the year before that. The dept of energy makes those numbers available freely should one look for them. The current run up in prices is largely due to the major oil producers not investing in New drilling leases nor actively drilling wells during the pandemic and now also investor’s seeing that big oil is no longer a solid return on investment so even less drilling will be funded. It’s a vicious cycle one that those of us who have been in the oil industry for decades are very familiar with. I have been in and out of the industry as a petroleum geologist for 20+ years. I also have done exploration,exploitation,operations and hydrogeology the industry is in a down cycle right now and will be for a few years get used to high prices $100 bbl is coming I would expect $120 to be the peak at those prices investor’s will flock back and supply will come online a year or so later.