Tag: fuel

Common Themes on Energy Policy Emerge Among Republican Presidential Candidates

Just the News

by Kevin Killough   In the past few years, America has seen high inflation rates and a faltering economy that some observers say will go into a recession. The latest conflict in the Middle East could likely pose a significant disruption in global energy supplies. Where the GOP contenders stand on energy policies will likely weigh heavily on voters’ decisions in 2024. Just The News highlights the key points the top Republican candidates have made with regard to energy policy during their campaigns. Donald Trump When former President Donald Trump, the current leader in the 2024 presidential race, sat down with Association of Mature American Citizens’ (AMAC) Rebecca Weber and Just The News’ John Solomon, he said that at the end of his term in 2020, America was energy independent. “We didn’t need anybody’s energy. We didn’t have to give them arms or armies. We didn’t have to guard anybody. We didn’t have to keep the Gulf open. We were totally set,” Trump said. In another six months, Trump said, the U.S. would have been energy dominant, meaning it would be the largest producer and exporter of oil and gas in the world. Trump told Weber and Solomon that unleashing American oil is key to the country’s economic…

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Commentary: Biden Has Conveniently Forgotten His Role in Explosive Gas Prices

Admin

President Joe Biden’s attempts to reduce the cause of high gas prices to the war in Ukraine initially, and corporate greed more recently, are disingenuous.

On day one this president clearly stated his opposition to oil and gas production and development. The president’s words and even more so his actions, have serious impacts on the costs of commodities, including oil.

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Average U.S. Gas Price Surges to $4.85 a Gallon

The Center Square

In what has become a seemingly every day occurrence, gas prices rose to a new record high Sunday as the national average approaches $5 a gallon.

Nine states already have surpassed the $5 threshold, and several others are just pennies away.

According to AAA, the average cost of a gallon of regular gasoline reached $4.85 Sunday, up an additional three cents from Saturday and 24 cents from last week.

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As Food Prices Soar with No End in Sight, Americans Change Habits

The Center Square

Americans are changing their shopping habits because of soaring food prices. And disruptions in the international farming community have some worried about the food supply heading into 2023.

The BMO Real Financial Progress Index, a quarterly survey from BMO and Ipsos, shows that 42% of surveyed adults “are changing how they shop for groceries,” including “opting for cheaper items, avoiding brand names and buying only the essentials.”

The report found “46% are either dining out less or consciously spending less when dining out.”

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Commentary: America’s Future Depends on the Bioeconomy

RealClearWire

If the coronavirus pandemic exposed the fragility of our supply chains, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has laid bare the precarious state of global food security. While inflation and sanctions on Russia have pushed up the price of food and fuel, the latest U.N. climate report provides a further urgent warning to change the status quo for the sake of our planet. It claims that global CO2 emissions must peak by 2025 to avoid catastrophic effects.

But there is an alternative to the uncomfortable choice between economic sacrifice, moral compromise, and ecological ruin. It’s called the bioeconomy, and it has the potential to address the existential challenges posed by climate change, global pandemics, and growing economic inequity. Imagine bio-based antiviral face masks, or carbon-neutral cement produced in facilities located in America’s former industrial hubs.

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Tennessee One of the Top States Hit with Biggest Weekly Increase in Gas Prices

Kaitlin Housler

The national average price for a gallon of gas rose last week to $3.48, four cents more than a week before, as The Tennessee Star previously reported.

The price of $3.48 is 18 cents more than a month ago and 98 cents more than a year ago, according to a press release by the American Automobile Association (AAA). The national average remains the highest price for a gallon of gas since 2014.

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Gas Crisis in Southeastern U.S. Worsens as over 1,000 Stations Run Out of Fuel

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America’s southeast is seeing the worst of the growing energy crisis after a devastating hack of a major American pipeline, with well over 1,000 gas stations running out of fuel altogether, the New York Post reports.

Following the hack of the Colonial Pipeline, a critical system that serves 17 states, the situation was made even worse by a spike in panic-buying of fuel, which led to even more gas stations running out than caused by the initial hack. North Carolina felt the worst of the shortage, with approximately 8.5 percent of its roughly 5,400 gas stations running empty. Virginia was not too far behind, after around 7.7 percent of its 3,900 stations also ran dry.

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Gas Shortage and Price Hike Expected This Summer

The Center Square

A gas shortage is expected this summer not because there won’t be enough fuel but because there aren’t enough highly trained and licensed tanker drivers to transport it.

Many tanker drivers retired last year after demand for oil and gas plummeted because fewer people were traveling during the height of the pandemic. And most driving schools where new drivers could have received their training were closed due to state-mandated shutdowns. The two factors combined is resulting in a shortage of roughly 25% of tanker truck drivers needed to transport fuel, says the National Tank Truck Carriers, the trade association representing the tanker truck industry.

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OPEC Scraps April Meeting but Keeps Oil Cuts in Place

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Reuters   Oil producer group OPEC on Monday scrapped its planned meeting in April and will decide instead whether to extend output cuts in June, once the market has assessed the impact of U.S. sanctions on Iran and the crisis in Venezuela. A ministerial panel of OPEC and its allies recommended that they cancel the extraordinary meeting scheduled for April 17-18 and hold the next regular talks on June 25-26. The energy minister of OPEC’s de facto leader, Saudi Arabia, said the market was looking oversupplied until the end of the year but that April would be too early for any decision on output policy. “The consensus we heard… is that April will be premature to make any production decision for the second half,” the Saudi minister, Khalid al-Falih, said. “As long as the levels of inventories are rising and we are far from normal levels, we will stay the course, guiding the market towards balance,” he added. The United States has been increasing its own oil exports in recent months while imposing sanctions on OPEC members Venezuela and Iran in an effort to reduce those two countries’ shipments to global markets. Washington’s policies have introduced a new level of…

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French President Macron Waves The White Flag On Carbon Taxes

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by Michael Bastasch   French President Emmanuel Macron decided to scrap the planned carbon tax on fuels after weeks of protests rocked Paris and other major cities across the country. An Élysée Palace official told The Associated Press Wednesday that “the president decided to get rid of the tax.” Macron’s decision comes one day after the government announced plans to delay implementing the carbon taxes for six months. The fuel taxes were meant to go into effect in January as part of France’s plan to fight global warming. Prime Minister Edouard Philippe told French lawmakers the carbon tax “is now abandoned.”  Phillippe said the government is “ready for dialogue” on what the next steps will be. [ RELATED: France May Be Ahead Of The Curve When It Comes To Global Warming Policy Backlash ] Thousands of protesters called “yellow vests” took to the streets to protest the carbon taxes, which would have added 33 cents to a gallon of diesel and 17 cents for a gallon of gasoline. Taxes already make up about 60 percent of the price of fuel in France. The average cost to fill a tank in France runs about $7 per gallon. The protests, the worst to hit Paris in 50 years, were also…

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President Trump to Allow Year-Round Sales of High-Ethanol Gas

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Gas up the car

President Donald Trump will allow year-round sales of renewable fuel with blends of 15 percent ethanol as part of an emerging deal to make changes to the federal ethanol mandate. Republican senators and the White House announced the deal Tuesday after a closed-door meeting, the latest in a series of White House sessions on ethanol. The Environmental Protection Agency currently bans the 15-percent blend, called E15, during the summer because of concerns that it contributes to smog on hot days. Gasoline typically contains 10 percent ethanol. Farm-state lawmakers have pushed for greater sales of the higher ethanol blend to boost demand for the corn-based fuel. Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley called the agreement good news for farmers and drivers alike, saying it would increase ethanol production and consumer choice at the pump. Texas Sen. Ted Cruz said the deal will save the jobs of thousands of blue-collar workers at refineries in Texas, Pennsylvania and other states. “Terrific final decision from @POTUS meeting,” Cruz tweeted. “This is a WIN-WIN for everyone.” Terrific final decision from @POTUS meeting: E15, year-round plus RINs for all exports. This is a WIN-WIN for everyone. More corn will be sold (good for farmers), plus lower RINs (saves…

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President Trump Lifts Puerto Rico Shipping Restrictions

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President Donald Trump lifted US shipping restrictions on storm-battered Puerto Rico for 10 days Thursday, temporarily removing a legal obstacle blamed for slowing the disaster relief response to Hurricane Maria, the White House said. A 1920 law that restricts shipments between American ports to US-owned and operated cargo ships has been preventing foreign-flagged ships from delivering…

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