Gas supply still stalled in the southeastern US

Some panicked drivers in the Southeast are still waiting in long lines to top off their tanks at the few gas stations that still have fuel. The shortages have hit Atlanta Georgia, Nashville & Knoxville Tenn, the Asheville N.C. and Spartanburg S.C. areas the hardest. Most drivers have been avoiding the use of there cars to keep from running out of gas. However there are reports of cars that have run dry while sitting in lines at stations all about these areas.

The supply disruptions have taken place along two major pipelines that have operated at well below capacity since the hurricanes knocked offshore oil production and several refineries out of service along the Gulf of Mexico.

One of the pipelines is based in Alpharetta, Ga., the Colonial Pipeline delivers a daily average of 100 million gallons of gasoline, home heating oil, aviation fuel and other refined petroleum products when running to capacity.

The Plantation Pipeline, which is partially owned by Kinder Morgan. Plantation Pipeline delivers over 600,000 barrels per day of gasoline, jet fuel and diesel through its network which serves Atlanta, Charlotte, Washington, D.C., and other destinations in the southeast United States when running to capacity.

Five of the major refineries in the US that supply nearly 5% of the nations gasoline supplies still remain closed. Currently it is reported that only 4 of the 17 refineries in the Houston area are still off line. In fact nearly two thirds of the refineries that were knocked off line by Ike are back on line. However the refineries that have come back on line are not operating at 100% capacity so gas supply will still remain somewhat limited. Gas should be in route to the areas now however it could be a few days before the pumps are actually back in use.

The gas shortages have sparking panic buying, long lines and high prices. Price gouging is the biggest problem during a gas supply shortage. At current the state of Georgia has subpoenaed sales records from approximately 130 gas stations after complaints of price gouging. One station reportedly charged almost $9 a gallon for regular grade gas.

If you suspect a station of gouging, take a picture of the posted prices on the sign as well as on the pump and contact the local police and the local Department of Energy  office and fill out this on line form.

Oil and Gas prices going up again

Oil rocketed up $25 a barrel today on the open market as the government stood by. Tension and anxiety over the government’s $700 billion bailout plan mixed with a weak dollar and an expiring crude contract ignited today’s fire storm. At the high point of trading October Delivery of Light Sweet Crude was up $25.45 but by the closing bell it had slid back to settle at $120.92, still up $16.37.  The spike was a record for one day movement which smashed the previous record of single day trading at $10.75 set on June 6th of this year.

Trading was halted once it hit the $10 single day limit only to have the limit raised and trading resumed moments later.  An oil trader with Alaron Trading Corp. in Chicago, said the late surge in oil appeared to be the result of a large investment fund scrambling to cover their short positions, or bets that prices would fall.

This will rip the soft scabs off our still fresh scrapes with the high gas prices at the pumps in the past few months. Oil and by nature gas has been sliding down and recently slipped below the $100 with prices at the pump started to slip to tolerable rates. This turn will put the costs at the pump into instant rise. By dawn tomorrow eager gas station owners will be advertising gas prices up $0.15 to $0.20 a gallon over today’s prices. For many of us in the east that will put us back over the magic $4 mark once again as our prices had still not retreated to pre record pricing.