I was going to say something about this earlier, but The [putrifying] Greenville News said that gas supply should be better this weekend. It isn’t. Now, it’s not going to be better till sometime next week.
What’s going on? Why don’t the people demand some sort of explanation? From Greenville, SC through Asheville, NC gasoline is almost impossible to find, and when it is found, it’s at an exhorbitant price.
Jenny Munro wants to make us, the consumers, responsible for alleviating the supply problem. I don’t think so! We’re supposed to believe that we are still paying for the effects of the fizzled storm Ike?
Read the article HERE.
Gas shortages persist in Upstate
By Jenny Munro • STAFF WRITER • September 27, 2008
The Upstate’s gasoline shortage is expected to persist into next week, although some gasoline is making its way to the terminals at Belton and Spartanburg, said Steve Spinks, president of Spinx Oil Co.
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“There will be stations out of product,” he said, “but the Upstate will not be dry.”
Almost half of his stores are out of some product, although many of them have some grades of gasoline or diesel fuel, he said.
Retail prices are expected to begin dropping as gasoline becomes more plentiful, he said. Wholesale prices have begun falling, he said, and retail prices normally follow.
Still, South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster said he is renewing the state’s prohibition on price gouging as he continues to investigate soaring gas prices.
McMaster said Friday his office had taken more than 4,000 complaints from consumers since he began his investigation Sept. 12.
McMaster said he plans to continue investigating gouging complaints for at least 15 more days. So far, McMaster has issued 15 subpoenas asking retailers about high prices.
He said he hasn’t charged anyone with price gouging so far.
Currently, the terminals still are receiving just a portion of their normal gasoline delivery from the Colonial and Plantation pipelines that run through the Upstate, Spinks said.
Spinx stores ran out of gasoline earlier Friday than on other days, he said.
Also, traffic delays occurred occasionally at different locations in Greenville because stations with gas attracted a crush of vehicles.
“Motorists should be patient and exercise control and restraint in gas lines,” said David E. Parsons, president and chief executive officer of AAA Carolinas. “Avoid panic pumping, or filling up and topping off your tanks when it’s not necessary, because that will continue the run on already very limited gas supplies.”
The tight situation is spreading, with Rock Hill, which receives gasoline from Charlotte terminals, reporting problems with pumps running dry Thursday, said Michael Fields, executive director of the South Carolina Petroleum Marketers Association.
Big shipments of gasoline expected to terminals in Charlotte, Spartanburg and Selma on Friday should allow a “replenishing” level of gasoline in some areas hit hard by gas shortages the past week, including Asheville, Charlotte, Greensboro, Aiken, Spartanburg and Greenville, Parsons said.
More Gulf Coast refineries are online, with more gasoline flowing through the pipelines, he said. Four of the 17 Houston-area refineries remain closed. Most others are in partial or full operation, with a handful expected to ramp up to full capacity through the weekend. The other 16 Gulf refineries were operating at either partial or full capacity Friday.
However, consumers probably won’t see much of an improvement until Tuesday or Wednesday, Spinks said.
“I know it’s jarring for them,” he said.
But “everybody is so depleted it’s not very efficient,” he said of the system, which operates smoothly only when it operates efficiently. He said Spinx is sending a truck to Charleston, which has a water-borne gasoline terminal. Gas is coming in there without difficulties. Product also is available in Savannah, Ga., and Wilmington, N.C. — also port cities that receive gasoline by ship.
Although the real problem is lack of supply, consumers can play a role in increasing efficiency in the distribution system, he said.
“They can ride on the bottom half of their tank,” he said. “They should start looking for gas at a fourth of a tank.”
Also, motorists could try to cut back on driving through the weekend and the first of the week, he said.
Clemson University has asked faculty and staff to conserve fuel by curtailing travel, carpooling and taking the CAT bus as much as possible in response to the gasoline shortage.
Gov. Mark Sanford has asked all state agencies, including Clemson, to prohibit nonessential travel because of tight fuel supplies around the state. The state will re-evaluate the policy next week based on the availability of fuel.
Parsons said the situation is improving.
“It is likely that stations will have more gas available this weekend. It will take time for tankers to deliver to different stops,” he said.
Large shipments of gas to the Southeast through the pipeline still are a week or more away, he said, and sporadic gasoline outages and shortages could occur during that period.