GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – While there are rising concerns over the ability for gas stations across the country to fill up when they’re running dry this summer, some analysts aren’t too worried.
During the pandemic, there was a stretch of time when companies were laying off truckers who deliver fuel to stations. While some people are concerned about the impact, GasBuddy Petroleum Analyst Patrick DeHaan thinks most motorists won’t even notice the difference.
“This is simply a delay in getting stations replenished as quickly as they’re selling through gasoline…This is more like a kink in the logistics chain, it is not going to be a gasoline shortage. There will be plenty of fuel, it’s just getting it where it needs to go as quickly as consumers are filling up,” DeHaan said. “Prices are still going to move. This is not going to be a factor. Even if logistics companies have to pay their drivers a little bit more, it’s divided amongst the 10,000 gallons these tankers can hold, so this is something that should not be a pricing event.”
Refineries are operating in about 85% capacity right now, so DeHaan says there’s plenty of room to boost production if needed. He points out that it’s not a shortage of gasoline, therefore it won’t impact the supply-demand balance and subsequent pricing.
“If consumers are are demanding a lot of gasoline this summer, that could drive prices up. But the trucker issue is not going to be something that affects price, it would be the overall demand of Americans that could affect prices summer,” DeHaan told WTAQ News. “This is not something that affects price because it’s overall small in nature compared to millions of gallons of gasoline that flow through pipelines and millions of gallons being produced in refineries. Those are the areas where, if there is a disruption, there tends to be a pricing impact.”
DeHaan says there will be isolated cases, more likely in heavily tourist-driven areas like Orlando, Florida (home of Disney World) or Yellowstone National Park, where there won’t be enough truckers in a given market on a given day to allow some stations to fill up their own supply.
“I don’t think the majority of Americans are going to notice any disruption this summer at the pump. I certainly would not expect it in Green Bay nor the big cities. This is something that’s going to be very isolated and very limited,” DeHaan said. “Overall, motorists have nothing to worry about. They may encounter higher prices this summer just because demand is going up because of the recovery, but overall we are not going to see record prices, and nearly every American is not going to have much trouble filling the tank.”
Comments