The Battle Over The Blame For Gas Prices: Oil Future Traders, OPEC Countries In Turmoil, Or Oil Companies?

Source: Washington Post

Higher oil prices per barrel driven by oil futures traders/OPEC countries security issues and failures by "big oil" companies to expand capacity of oil refineries are leading to anxiety at the pump every time Americans, and well, people across the world fill up their gas tanks.

When Severin Borenstein drove by a Shell station in Orinda, Calif., yesterday morning, the price of unleaded gasoline was $2.99 a gallon. When he drove by five hours later, the price was $3.10 a gallon.

Borenstein has a better grasp of why that happened than most. He's a professor of business and public policy at the University of California at Berkeley and is director of the University of California Energy Institute.

"The oil side is one piece of this. The refining side is another piece of this," he said.

Oil prices are soaring, with the price of crude at more than $70 a barrel on world markets and 37 percent higher than a year ago. That works out to more than $1.70 a gallon, more than half the cost of a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline.

The next biggest chunk of the cost of a gallon of gasoline is the cost of refining, which is now about twice the average levels over the past five years.

Some people think oil companies are holding back prices to keep up high prices and keep power over the high prices.

I honestly can't remember when a consortium of companies artificially inflated the prices of a product all in the name of record profits. [sarcasm]

And that has sparked controversy over whether oil refiners have been gouging consumers by holding back on expanding capacity to gain more power over prices.

The oil companies deny those allegations.

Of course, they would deny the above! We all know they are full of it though. They are all about making money, and honestly, they don't give a damn if you have money to feed your family or pay the bills as long as you keep filling up that mini-van or SUV.

These are the price Americans and people across the world will continue to pay for their love of oil. The oil companies have customers by the balls, and many governments are complacent in the deliberate fleecing of the gasoline customer.

Time for alternative fuels anyone?

Tags: [oil], [oil companies], [big oil], [OPEC], [price gouging], [refineries aren't producing at full capacity], [$70 a barrel], [Severin Borenstein], [University of California at Berkeley], [University of California Energy Institute], [oil companies have customers by the balls]