California refiners move smoothly into next phase of RFG

Journal Article · Wed May 01 04:00:00 EDT 1996 · Fuel Technology amp Management

OSTI ID:457907

Schaffer, S ^[1]

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1. ed.

The California RFG program (CARB RFG) began at the refinery level in March, the terminal level in April and will begin being enforced at the retail level June 1. By all accounts, early implementation is proceeding smoothly, with prices for both gasoline and oxygenates remaining fairly steady. Analysts labeled the introduction of the world`s cleanest gasoline {open_quotes}a non-event{close_quotes}. By April 1, more than half of the retail gasoline stations in California had fully complying CARB RFG. With cumulative investments of more than $3 billion, California`s refiners will be looking to recapture as much of the cost in the marketplace as possible. The incremental cost of CARB RFG production over federal RFG is estimated by refiners to be about 10{cents}/gal, mainly due to the capital investments needed for hydrotreating to reduce sulfur levels. Early batches of fuel on the spot market sold for about 8{cents}/gal over conventional prices, about 4.5{cents}/gal above federal RFG, according to the Oil Price Information Service (OPIS).

• OSTI ID: 457907
• Journal Information: Fuel Technology amp Management, Journal Name: Fuel Technology amp Management Journal Issue: 3 Vol. 6; ISSN 1087-4003; ISSN FTMAFH
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

02 PETROLEUM
CALIFORNIA
GASOLINE
GASOLINE SERVICE STATIONS
IMPLEMENTATION
MARKETING
PETROLEUM REFINERIES
POLLUTION REGULATIONS
PRICES
PRODUCTION