Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

To: mysterio
I hear we are expanding a refinery, but no new ones have been built in a while. I just think that any energy source that gives your enemies the ability to shut down your economy is one we should consider replacing.

We are expanding more than one, and have been for a while. Refineries have been expanding within and around their existing locations, and efficiency is also up. As Fig. 5 shows, refining "capacity," however defined, has been trending upward nicely over the last 15 years.


131 posted on 06/06/2006 6:31:28 AM PDT by thackney (life is fragile, handle with prayer)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 123 | View Replies ]


To: thackney; mysterio
"capacity," however defined, has been trending upward nicely over the last 15 years...

Longer than that. 

We hear pundits harping about no new refineries all the time, usually right before they start calling for some goofy new federal energy "solution".  We only seem to hear about the rest of the refinery story on the Freerepublic.

No new refineries have been built because they haven't been needed.  The oil price shock of the late '70's made a big change in the worlds oil usage.  So much so that OPEC doesn't even want to think about pulling a stunt like that again.

A quarter century later we're barely back up to where we were as far as using what was there.  We've got a long way to go before new refineries are needed, if ever.

135 posted on 06/06/2006 9:16:57 AM PDT by expat_panama
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 131 | View Replies ]

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article


FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson