Wholesale gasoline prices top $5 a gallon

[kpete]

Wholesale gasoline prices top $5 a gallon
09.11.08, 4:20 PM ET

By Janet McGurty

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Wholesale gasoline prices in the U.S. Gulf topped $5 a gallon on Thursday as the region's oil refineries began closing down ahead of Hurricane Ike, adding to fears that U.S. drivers could see pump prices rise again.

Prompt spot gasoline prices in the U.S. Gulf traded at a record $2.50 a gallon over their gasoline futures benchmark, which itself traded as high as $2.83 a gallon in active trade on the NYMEX exchange, putting the price tag on a wholesale gallon of gasoline as high as $5.32 per gallon.

"The worst-case scenario for the hurricane season is what we're looking at with Ike," said Chris Jarvis, senior analyst with Caprock Risk Management.

Eleven Texas refineries representing 16 percent of total U.S. refinery capacity were shuttered in precaution ahead of Hurricane Ike, including the nation's largest, ExxonMobil (nyse: XOM - news - people )'s 567,000 barrel-per-day refinery in Baytown, Texas.

http://www.forbes.com/reuters/feeds/reuters/2008/09/11/2008-09-11T202006Z_01_N11411955_RTRIDST_0_STORM-IKE-USG-GASOLINE-UPDATE-3.html

[glinda]

1. I would pay $5 a gallon if.....

they would cover my $1250 a month health care bill.

[alittlelark]

2. That used to be called 'price gouging'

back when our country was sane.

[OwnedByFerrets]

3. I said the same thing earlier today...now its capitalism...nt

[rucky]

4. Drill, Drill, Drill!

a hole in my wallet.

[punkin87]

9. Good.

[nebenaube]

5. So that's three years in a row...

So that's three years in a row that the weather has threatened the refineries in the gulf region and the associated damage and/or shutdowns has caused energy prices to skyrocket just in time for heating season... I understand the refineries are national security concerns so perhaps they need to be nationalized and relocated to the "dead" areas like Nevada or somewhere where Tropical storms are not an issue.

[On the Road]

6. No Matter Who Owns Them,

they would still have to be shut down when necessary.

As far as location, I think that largely has to do with minimizing transport and being near petroleum production and distribution.

[Old and In the Way]

8. 3 more good reasons to diversify our energy portfolio.

1) Solar, wind, geothermal are renewables that would be decentralized and less concentrated in coastal areas that are subject to storms caused in part by burning carbon based energy products.

2) You can't easily sell power from solar, wind, or peothermal on the world market.

3) They create jobs in all parts of the country.

[NYC_SKP]

7. Go Fill Up Tomorrow Morning. Really. The hurricane could hike prices.

And the price hike could happen with or without damage.

And if it takes out a refinery, forget about it, bad news, that.

:patriot: