@texases Yes, the wiki definition would include all the energy used and other costs and the part of the crude used up in the refining process. That’s more than $1.15 per barrel of course. My definition is what a third party refinery would quote as their reward for changing the crude into products. There are many such refineries, in the Virgin Islands, Sardinia (Italy) and other strategically located places that have deep water access.
When you refine 1000 barrels of crude, you don’t get 1000 barrels of product out. The difference is included in the crack spread.
Here in East Central Indiana, our price today is $3.35 for 87 octane. Last week it was $3.21 and I had a coupon for a 5 cent a gallon discount, so I paid $3,16. I can save 10 cents a gallon if I drive to the next town about 20 miles away. I can also drive to the south part of our town and sometimes save 5 cents a gallon for the same brand of gas.
Part of the problem, I think, is that I live in a university community and prices go up near the week-end so that the distributor can milk more money from the students leaving town.
With all of the bureaucratic red tape, legalities, and follow-up costs not to mention actually boring a hole in the ground, the only thing that surprises me is that gasoline is not 100 dollars a gallon…
@VDCDriver Interesting that the mayor of Toronto managed to do what Justin Bieber, Celine Dion and Wayne Gretzky never managed to do; get coverage on all US networks for several weeks!
@OK4450 Yes, it’s rather marvelous that such a valuable product requiring so much technology and capital sells for less that upscale brands of bottled water!
Hopefully you are not one of those people who think that all of NJ is typical of the few square miles that you see (and smell) from the NJ Turnpike, as that is most definitely not the norm for the state as a whole.
I spent some time in both Boston and its suburbs this summer, and while it was a nice getaway for a few days, I much prefer my location in Central NJ, both for the saner drivers and the quieter, cleaner environment. I live in the third-wealthiest county in the US, and–trust me–the super-wealthy folks in this area do not tolerate anything that could be considered to be…an inconvenience…or unhealthy…or undesirable in any respect.
Or…in other words…Would Doris Duke have built her main estate a few miles from my home if the area wasn’t pristine?
While much of NJ suffers from congestion, my home is surrounded on 3 sides by state park land, and the loudest noises that I hear are usually the birds or the occasional scream from a fox at night. Whenever my friends in California, NY, Delaware, PA, and NH ask why I don’t take more vacations, my answer is…When you already live in paradise, why would you want to go anywhere else for more than a few days? ;-))
I have traveled through most of Europe and most of The US, and I still think that the ambiance and environment of my area of rural Central NJ is superior to most of what I have seen in other parts of the world.
Tonight will be a twilight zone out here in the west along I-40, New Mexico / Arizona corridor.
All this rain is gonna FREEZE…then it’s gonna SNOW on top of that.
Keep your eyes on the news. That’s where I’ll be, not going anywhere or doing anything driving, just staying inside.
@VDCdriver, I do actually have a soft spot for New Jersey because I lived in Princeton for a while, which was quite lovely. Unfortunately I never got a chance to visit your central paradise, but maybe some day.
Year we had twilight zone in our little Minnesota paradise last night too. Only an inch of snow but slicker than heck and first of the season. Salt trucks were going all night long.
