The fuel and petrochemical manufacturing industries have come a long way from the simple thermal stills used to create kerosene in the 19th century to today’s sophisticated, high-tech and complex facilities that help provide America — and the world — with the fuels, petrochemicals and products that we all rely upon every day.
An engineer scoops a handful of tiny pellets out of a stainless-steel canister at a manufacturing plant in the Netherlands and rolls them around in his hand.
From the wings and fuselage to the seats and overhead bins, petrochemicals have been increasingly relied upon to make passenger aircraft lighter and stronger, cutting fuel use and costs and making air travel more sustainable at a time when more people are flying than ever before.
Vehicle efficiency is not a partisan issue. Every driver wants cleaner, more efficient cars and trucks. They also want them to be affordable, safe and family friendly. Fuel-powered internal combustion engine vehicles offer a range of options that satisfy these criteria, and they’re getting better every year.
COVID-19 upended energy markets. Demand disappeared and producers scaled back. Now that economies are reopening, and the demand for goods and services is rebounding, the demand for energy all along the supply chain is increasing, driving up not only the cost of the feedstocks and fuels refineries and petrochemical manufacturers use, but also the cost of the energy used at every step of the supply chain.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – "Federal policy is discouraging supply by shutting down pipelines, putting future production off limits, talking down the future of the petroleum business, and imposing expensive requirements on refineries, chief among them a burdensome Renewable Fuel Standard. The Administration is blaming others when it ought to take a sober look at its own energy policy."
Decarbonizing heavy trucks and airplanes, which will continue to rely on liquid fuels for the foreseeable future, once seemed a distant dream. That is changing thanks to innovation and investment from America’s fuel refiners, which are manufacturing renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuels that cut carbon emissions by as much as 80 percent.
Limiting California’s access to the exact types of crude oil its facilities need will only increase prices for the state’s consumers and travelers. Drivers are already dealing with gasoline prices in excess of $5 per gallon and the highest fuel taxes of the 50 states. Confining energy producers and consumers to a smaller pool of crude oil will make a very sensitive price environment that much worse.
As the days grow longer and the mercury rises, boating season gets into full swing. For the next several months, sportsman, families, and boating enthusiasts alike will hit the water to cool off and enjoy all that boating has to offer.