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California Gov. Gavin Newsom proposed legislation Thursday that would require oil refineries in the state to Maintain minimum reserves of gasoline and other fuels in an effort to prevent supply shortages and price hikes during refinery outages.
Energy in California The commission said refineries in the state maintained less than 15 days of gasoline supply in 63 days last year, which it said was Caused a price hike The cost of the drivers is $650 million.
“Higher prices at the pump are higher profits for Big Oil,” Newsom said. “Refiners should be required to plan ahead and provide the supplies needed to keep prices stable, rather than playing games to make more profits.”
Under the proposal, California refiners would be required to submit adequate resupply plans to address production losses when their plants undergo maintenance.
The Western States Petroleum Association said claims that refineries are intentionally shutting down plants for maintenance during the driving season are false and “deliberately misleading.” It added: “Imposing new operating mandates on energy producers based on such lies constitutes regulatory negligence and ignores the logistical challenges and costs associated with such a plan.”
Companies that own refineries in California include Marathon Petroleum (NYSE:MPC), Chevron (NYSE: CVX), PBF Energy (PBF), Valero Energy (VLO) and Phillips 66 (PSX).
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