A major Midwest oil refinery will be shutting down temporarily, according to a new report, even as gas prices are already rising.
"A source tells me a full turnaround (shutdown) at ExconMobil’s Joliet, IL refinery will begin imminently and is planned to last ~50 days,” Gas Buddy’s Patrick De Haan posted on X.
"This refinery can churn out nearly 9 million gallons of gasoline daily, so it’ll be a noticeable loss for the Great Lakes," he wrote.
⚠️🚨 A source tells me a full turnaround (shutdown) at ExconMobil’s Joliet, IL refinery will begin imminently and is planned to last ~50 days. This refinery can churn out nearly 9 million gallons of gasoline daily, so it’ll be a noticeable loss for the Great Lakes.
— Patrick De Haan ⛽️📊 (@GasBuddyGuy) March 27, 2024
The Joliet refinery is ranked as the 24th largest in the nation by the Energy Information Administration. It also is the fifth-largest in the Midwest region, according to a review of the rankings.
According to AAA, the average price of a gallon of unleaded gasoline is $3.535 per gallon. That’s up from $3.271 a month ago.
AAA figures show fluctuations by state, with California’s state average price for a gallon of unleaded gasoline at $5.012 per gallon.
Houston energy analyst Andy Lipow said prices will keep rising, according to KRIV.
"Gasoline prices are going continue to increase, through the summer, to about $3.75 as the national average," Lipow said.
In Minnesota, gas prices have already been rising, according to KARE.
MINNESOTA: Average gas prices have gone up 35 cents/gallon in just the past month.
The nationwide average for a gallon of regular gas is up ~48% since Biden took office. pic.twitter.com/7zQw9uTWjC
— Illinois girl Desi (@d_ewinger) March 27, 2024
De Haan, who is head of petroleum analysis, said domestic and international factors are at work, noting that a BP refinery in Indiana, the largest in the Midwest, recently shut down unexpectedly, helping prices spike for several weeks. AAA said that has since reopened.
"We've now seen the national average price of gasoline rising for four straight weeks, which isn't uncommon for this time of year. What is uncommon is the number of attacks on Russian oil refiners, attacks which could have ripple effects worldwide if they continue," De Haas told KARE.
"Russia could see more capacity impacted by the attacks, forcing it to buy such products on the global market, pushing prices up everywhere," he said.
De Haan said gas prices could keep inching upwards.
"We will drill baby, drill!"
Donald Trump blasts Biden-era fuel prices, lays out plan to bring back cheap gas. pic.twitter.com/tJ1nxaSOFd
— Resist the Mainstream (@ResisttheMS) March 27, 2024
AAA representative Devin Gladden said aging infrastructure would also send prices rising, noting that the BP refinery that was offline for weeks was impacted by a fire.
“One fire that could last for weeks that could really put supply in a tight crunch just like we saw in the Midwest this winter,” he said, according to Bloomberg.
“If we see more incidents like that because of aging refinery infrastructure, that could certainly put a crimp on supply, particularly during the summer when we typically see higher demand levels,” he said.
