News

Breaking down California’s gasoline price spike

April 17, 2019 ,

April 17, 2019 By Kendra Seymour California’s gasoline prices consistently outpace average pump prices across the U.S., but in the past month, Californians have experienced an average price increase of roughly 60 cents per gallon, spiking the Golden State’s fuel prices even higher than usual, as you can see in the chart from GasBuddy, below. What’s going on here? Why...
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California’s Fossil Fuel “Sin Tax”

April 16, 2019

April 16, 2019 By John Faulstich With the recent increase in gasoline prices in California (the retail gas price average just bumped up over $4 per gallon) and renewed interest in this subject, we thought it timely to present an overview of the major components of what goes into the price of gasoline at the pump. The U.S. Energy Information...
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How the Midwest bomb cyclone could impact gasoline prices throughout the U.S.

April 8, 2019

April 8, 2019 By Barry Schaps Whoever heard of a bomb cyclone weather event? In case you haven’t, here’s the rundown: A bomb cyclone is the rapid development of a “cyclonic low-pressure area” which occurs most frequently in marine environments in the winter months but can occur in continental settings and at other times of the year. Residents and farmers...
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IMO 2020: How Will the Marketplace Value New Compliant Marine Fuels?

March 20, 2019 , ,

March 20, 2019 By Jim Mladenik & Ralph Grimmer Over the past two years, Stillwater Associates has offered a series of articles on various aspects of IMO 2020. Implementation of IMO 2020 is now less than ten months away. In this article, we will provide information on data sources providing visibility to spot and futures prices for IMO 2020-compliant blends...
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California’s LCFS Solution Gets National Stage Time in Canada

March 15, 2019

Stillwater has written a lot about the California Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) program over the years, and we even publish a one-of-a-kind LCFS Newsletter covering California’s program. We’ve also reported on Oregon’s Clean Fuels Program (CFP) from its inception in 2016. Now, we turn to Canada’s under-construction Clean Fuel Standard (CFS) which aims to reduce Canada’s greenhouse gas (GHG)...
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Sustainable Aviation Fuels Prepare for Takeoff in Washington State

March 13, 2019 , ,

March 13, 2019 By Kendra Seymour My colleagues Megan Boutwell, Jim Mladenik, and I attended the first-ever Washington Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF) Summit last week in Seattle. The summit was hosted by Earth Day Northwest 2020 and presented by Boeing, Alaska Airlines, Delta Air Lines, and the Port of Seattle. Washington Governor and U.S. Presidential Candidate Jay Inslee even made...
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Stillwater Benchmark for Refinery Stationary Source Cap & Trade Costs

February 21, 2019 , ,

April 18, 2019 1.201 cpg   This benchmark represents the cost in cents per gallon of CARBOB gasoline and CARB diesel incurred by the refining sector under of the stationary source provision of California’s Cap and Trade program (Stationary Source Cap and Trade or SSC&T). Stillwater’s Benchmark for Refinery SSC&T Cost is calculated using the following formula: Actual Refining Sector...
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CORSIA 101 – A Beginner’s Guide

February 20, 2019 , ,

What is CORSIA? CORSIA (the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation) is a program administered by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) with a goal of capping CO2 (carbon) emissions from international aviation at 2020 levels. A future goal is to reduce net carbon emissions fifty percent by 2050 compared to 2005 levels. Carbon emissions from domestic aviation...
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Water Management in the Downstream

February 20, 2019

February 20, 2019 by E.J. Ledet Water contamination incidents in the transportation fuels supply chain can have a dramatic effect on fuel quality. Fortunately, such incidents can be prevented with the implementation of proper water-management procedures. In this article, we identify the common water contamination issues along the downstream fuels supply chain and offer helpful checklists to avoid contamination incidents....
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U.S. LNG Bunkering Implementation and Safety Practices

February 1, 2019 ,

February 1, 2019 By John Wolff On December 4, 2018, the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) hosted its 2018 Liquefied Gas Senior Executive Forum in Houston. The program was co-sponsored by the Society of International Gas Tanker and Terminal Operators (SIGGTO) and the Society of Gas as a Marine Fuel (SGMF). The forum’s speakers addressed many aspects of using LNG as...
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Webinar: IMO 2020 and the Sulphur/Sulphuric Acid Markets

January 16, 2019 , ,

Acuity Commodities has partnered with Stillwater Associates to model three scenarios reflecting implementation of new International Maritime Organization (IMO) marine fuel rule from January 1, 2020, when the maximum sulphur content in bunker fuel oil has to be reduced to 0.50%. With the IMO 2020 implementation deadline unlikely to be postponed and less than 12 months away, sulphur and acid...
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LNG Bunkering in U.S. Ports: Change is Coming

December 23, 2018

By John Wolff, Senior Associate Image: KLAW LNG Liquefied natural gas (LNG) can be used as a fuel for ships (and trucks and buses) with specially designed fuel tanks. Currently, few U.S.- and foreign-flagged vessels are fueled with LNG, although that number may increase with the coming IMO 2020 regulation. U.S. officials have historically treated LNG with extreme caution in...
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A Look Ahead: The Long Term LCFS Credit Price

December 14, 2018 ,

On December 13, 2018, Stillwater Senior Associate Leigh Noda participated as a panelist at the OPIS LCFS & Carbon Markets Workshop in San Francisco. The panelists were asked to address: “What exactly will the long-term price of the LCFS credit look like? As the LCFS program heads into 2020 and beyond, what products will produce the most credits?” Leigh weighed in...
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Moving Renewable Fuels to Market: U.S. Infrastructure

December 10, 2018

On December 10, 2018, Dave Hackett provided a presentation on U.S. renewable fuels transportation infrastructure to a joint government and industry working group. This presentation explains how ethanol and biodiesel are moved from renewable fuels production centers to markets where they are blended with petroleum products for retail sale. You can view a PDF of Dave’s presentation here.

The Problem of Invalidated RINs in the Renewable Fuel Standard

November 14, 2018 ,

November 14, 2018 by Mike Newman of Parhelion Underwriting Under the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) imposed a “buyer beware” approach to the purchase and sale of Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs). This creates a liability for any buyer of RINs, making them responsible for purchases of invalid RINS, even if done inadvertently.[1] The liability includes the...
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West Coast Crude Oil Supply

November 1, 2018

November 1, 2018 by David Hackett Last month, our friends at RBN Energy held a conference in Houston (of course) to bring together people interested in the development of crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids from the Permian Basin in West Texas. Figure 1. Crude-Producing Regions in the United States Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration The Permian has...
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IMO 2020: A presentation to the U.S. Coast Guard and Shell

October 31, 2018 ,

On October 31st, 2018, Stillwater Senior Associate Ralph Grimmer presented comments on IMO 2020 – the International Maritime Organization’s mandated reduction in the maximum sulfur content of marine fuel (bunker fuel oil) from 3.5% to 0.5% on January 1, 2020 – at the U.S. Coast Guard/Shell “Navigating the Future” Seminar in Martinez, California. IMO 2020 will have a significant impact on the shipping and...
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Has California Gasoline Demand Peaked?

October 17, 2018 ,

by Dave Hackett Stillwater is often asked to provide forecasts for petroleum demand. Clients use these forecasts to understand how the market is likely to change. For the last four or five years, we have predicted a drop in gasoline demand, mostly driven by cars and light-duty trucks getting better gas mileage as the result of the Corporate Average Fuel...
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California Carbon Info: Future Supply and Demand of California Carbon Offsets

October 17, 2018

As the passage of AB 398 has strengthened and extended California’s Cap and Trade program, we think our readers will benefit from a spotlight on the trends in the carbon credit market. As such, we periodically feature guest articles on California’s Cap and Trade program from our friends at CaliforniaCarbon.info. CaliforniaCarbon.info is a comprehensive information service covering the Western Climate Initiative...
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War Story: “Go figure it out”

October 15, 2018 , , , ,

by Brian Conroy When Stillwater Associate Brian Conroy worked for BP in 2006 as Global Sales and Market Development Manager of Specialty Chemicals, he was offered an opportunity to try something new. With a background in chemicals, beginning in research and progressing to various roles in business, he was ready for the change. BP’s CEO had mandated the launch of...
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War Story: California’s Lengthy Multi-Media Evaluation Process

September 12, 2018 , , ,

September 12, 2018 By Jessica Loomis Twenty years ago, methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE) was a common additive used to oxygenate and raise the octane number in gasoline, but when incidents of MTBE leaking occurred from underground storage tanks at gas stations in California, groundwater contamination became a growing issue. MTBE isn’t particularly toxic, but its taste and odor can render...
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Agile Mergers & Acquisitions Advisory Services

September 10, 2018 ,

September 10, 2018 By Vaughn Hulleman Agile is a project management method whose principles include placing customer satisfaction as the highest priority and delivering products or services frequently. This approach is used mostly in software development, but can advisory services for Mergers and Acquisitions be Agile? The Agile project management approach includes breaking the overall work requirements into smaller components...
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California Cap and Trade 101

September 7, 2018 , ,

September 7, 2018 By Jim Mladenik and Kendra Seymour Following the publication of our LCFS 101: Beginner’s Guide and LCFS 101: Update, we have received requests for a similar overview of California’s Cap and Trade (C&T) Program. To that end, here we cover what C&T is, how it works, and how it’s performing so far. What is Cap and Trade?...
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The Renewable Fuel Standard – Part 3: Where to from here? 

September 1, 2018 , ,

September 1, 2018 by Brian Conroy  This is the third and final segment in a series of articles on the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). In part one, we discussed the context around the passage of RFS. Part two covered the program’s primary goals and the progress to-date toward each goal. Today we conclude our series by looking down the road to discuss a new way to think about...
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California Stationary Source Cap and Trade Benchmark

August 8, 2018 , ,

August 8, 2018, updated February 28, 2019 BACKGROUND California’s Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (AB 32) put in place a series of policies and programs across all major sectors with the goal of returning California emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. The California Air Resources Board (CARB) is tasked with developing regulations and market mechanisms to meet this goal....
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The Renewable Fuel Standard – Part 2: Performance Over Time

August 7, 2018 ,

August 1, 2018 by Brian Conroy In Part 1 of this series, we discussed the background and drivers for the implementation of the U.S. Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS). In Part 2, we will look at how RFS has performed against each of its three primary goals: Increase energy security Provide a mechanism for higher demand for U.S. agriculture Reduce greenhouse...
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Projecting the Costs of California’s Cap & Trade and Low Carbon Fuel Standard Programs

July 25, 2018 , ,

July 25, 2018 By Jim Mladenik and Kendra Seymour Showing the line-item cost to consumers of carbon-reduction programs assists legislators in crafting effective policy and helps fuel consumers make informed decisions. To that end, Stillwater’s carbon policy team recently conducted an analysis of the potential impact of California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) and Carbon Cap & Trade (C&T) programs...
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Expected Pricing and Economic Impacts of the IMO 2020 Rule

July 10, 2018 , ,

July 11, 2018 by Ralph Grimmer The International Maritime Organization (IMO) will make a significant change to the maximum allowed sulfur content of marine fuel consumed on open oceans beginning January 1, 2020. This global change (via IMO revision of its MARPOL VI rule) was triggered by an IMO decision in 2008. Over the past year, Stillwater Associates has offered...
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Bio-Isobutanol – Overview and Challenges 

July 8, 2018 , ,

July 8, 2018 by Adam Schubert  On June 12th, 2018 the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it had granted to Butamax Advanced Biofuels, LLC (Butamax) registration of blends of up to 16 volume percent (vol%) isobutanol in gasoline. Prior to granting this registration, EPA took the unusual step of seeking public comment due to, as EPA put it, the significant possibility that such isobutanol-gasoline blends had the potential for widespread use.   Overview  Butamax and its competitor, Gevo, have...
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LCFS Successes and Challenges

June 20, 2018 , ,

On June 19, 2018, Stillwater’s President, Dave Hackett, participated as a panel member in an informational hearing on the Low Carbon Fuel Standard (LCFS) held by the California State Assembly’s Select Committee on California’s Energy Future. The panel included an overview of the LCFS offered by the Legislative Analyst’s Office followed by comments from regulated parties and interested stakeholders. Dave...
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IMO 2020 & Crude Slate Pricing: Choose Your Own Adventure

June 5, 2018 , ,

June 5, 2018 by Kendra Seymour Contributors: James Ahrens, John Faulstich, Ralph Grimmer, Jim Mladenik, and Arshad Sheikh Let’s go back in time, to the late 1970s when sulfur regulations for fuel oil were less stringent and heavy San Joaquin Valley (SJV) crude was priced extremely low. This SJV was often minimally processed then dumped into the bunker fuel market...
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California Carbon Info: Regulatory Round-up – Informal Workshop on Potential Amendments to Cap-and-Trade Regulation

May 15, 2018

As the passage of AB 398 has strengthened and extended California’s Cap and Trade program, we think our readers will benefit from a spotlight on the trends in the carbon credit market. As such, we periodically feature guest articles on California’s Cap and Trade program from our friends at CaliforniaCarbon.info. CaliforniaCarbon.info is a comprehensive information service covering the Western Climate Initiative...
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LCFS 101 – An Update

May 2, 2018 , ,

May 2, 2018 by Megan Boutwell A lot has happened since we wrote our first LCFS 101 article last year. Here we provide an update on the rules and the status of the credit market. What is the LCFS California’s Low Carbon Fuel Standard is one of a group of programs designed to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions enacted through...
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The Trans Mountain Tangle

May 2, 2018 , , ,

May 2, 2018 by Stillwater Staff There’s a battle brewing between two provinces in Canada over a pipeline, and it may cause transportation fuels prices to spike at least in the short-term. Here we offer the backstory to get you up-to-date. In 2013, Kinder Morgan filed an application with the Canadian National Energy Board to essentially twin the existing 1,150...
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Stillwater Celebrates 20 Years

May 1, 2018

May 1, 2018 by Jessica Loomis During the week of April 16th, Stillwater Associates met in beautiful Laguna Beach, California for our Annual Meeting. Associates came from all over the country to get caught up on the state of the business, share ideas, and get re-acquainted. This year was particularly special because Stillwater Associates is celebrating 20 years of being...
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IMO 2020: A Sea Change is Coming

April 25, 2018 ,

On April 24, 2018, at The Sulphur Institute’s Sulphur World Symposium in Philadelphia, Stillwater Senior Associate Ralph Grimmer presented comments on IMO 2020 – the International Maritime Organization’s mandated reduction in the maximum sulfur content of marine fuel (bunker fuel oil) from 3.5% to 0.5% on January 1, 2020. Ralph’s presentation offers an IMO 2020 overview, a look at the perspectives of...
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Carbon Capture and Utilization for Enhanced Oil Recovery

March 28, 2018

March 28, 2018 By Dave Hackett Buzz-word phrases like Carbon Capture and Storage, its sister concept Carbon Capture and Utilization, Enhanced Oil Recovery, and “Clean Coal” have been gaining air time in conversations among oil industry experts and policymakers. Stillwater has done work in the CCU space. In fact, Stillwater Energy Group – a subsidiary of Stillwater Associates – has...
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Impact of Fuels Regulations on Bio-Processors

March 21, 2018

On March 20, 2018, Stillwater’s president Dave Hackett presented comments on the impact of fuels regulations on bio-processors at the Bio-Processing Leadership Summit in Sonoma, California. You can view a PDF of Dave’s presentation here.

War Stories: A Case for Due Diligence

March 20, 2018 ,

March 20, 2018 By Jessica Loomis In 1997, Stillwater Senior Associate Jeff Kennedy found himself living in California after several decades of moving around the country working for Mobil Oil. Following a much-needed break, Jeff met a convincing “self-styled serial entrepreneur” who we will call “Mr. X.” At the time, Mr. X was consulting with a start-up company working to...
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Upcoming Changes to the Renewable Fuel Standard and Potential Impacts

March 13, 2018 ,

March 13, 2018 At the 2018 AFPM Annual Meeting, Stillwater Associate Mike Leister offered a presentation analyzing the changes that EPA is making to the RFS in 2018. He examined the reasons for these changes and their likely impact on renewable biofuels and the various RIN markets. Mike also discussed the projected status of the RIN banks at the end of 2017 and through 2018. Finally, Mike...
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FLASH ANALYSIS: CARB’s Latest LCFS Rulemaking – Are the goalposts moving?

February 22, 2018 , ,

February 22, 2018 On February 20th, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) released Unofficial LCFS Rulemaking Documents for public review. These proposed amendments will be considered at a CARB Board hearing in April 2018 and voted on at a second hearing in mid-to-late 2018. In the past, CARB has released draft rulemaking documentation before public workshops, but this release –...
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IMO 2020 Part 5: Enforcement

February 15, 2018 ,

February 15, 2018 By Ralph Grimmer The International Maritime Organization (IMO) is moving forward with a marked reduction in the maximum sulfur content of marine fuel (bunker fuel oil) from 3.5% to 0.5% on January 1, 2020. In the first four articles of our series on this “IMO 2020 Rule,” Stillwater provided an overview of the rule followed by assessments...
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California Carbon Info: Analysis of CCO usage for 2016 compliance obligation

February 10, 2018 , , ,

As the passage of AB 398 has strengthened and extended California’s Cap and Trade program, we think our readers will benefit from a spotlight on the trends in the carbon credit market. As such, we periodically feature guest articles on California’s Cap and Trade program from our friends at CaliforniaCarbon.info. CaliforniaCarbon.info is a comprehensive information service covering the Western Climate Initiative...
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The Cost of Premium

February 9, 2018 ,

February 9, 2018 By David Hackett Stillwater Associates is often retained to analyze markets. Currently, we have a project for the Fuels Institute to look at the demand for higher octane gasoline in the future.  This analysis is driven by the growing demand for higher octane gasolines that cars increasingly need to maximize the performance of their turbocharged engines. In...
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Policy trends we’ll be watching in 2018

January 17, 2018

January 15, 2018 By Megan Boutwell Stillwater’s transportation energy policy experts closely follow federal, state, and international policy developments and their impacts on industry and consumers. As 2018 begins, there are a number of policy trends that we will be following and for which we’ll provide expertise to clients. The following are of some of the biggest policy trends we...
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What’s New in California’s Final 2017 Climate Change Scoping Plan?

January 17, 2018 , ,

January 10, 2018 By Miriam Stern Last month, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) approved the final version of California’s 2017 Climate Change Scoping Plan, a blueprint for reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions (GHGs), bolstering clean energy, and improving air quality. We previously summarized the proposed Scoping Plan (drafted early last year), and, while the overall framework in the final plan...
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IMO 2020 Part 4: Bunker Suppliers’ and Blenders’ Perspective

January 15, 2018 , ,

January 15, 2018     By Ralph Grimmer of Stillwater Associates, and Adrian Tolson of 20|20 Marine Energy The International Maritime Organization (IMO) is moving forward with a marked reduction from 3.5% to 0.5% in the maximum sulfur content of marine fuel (bunker fuel oil) on January 1, 2020. In our November 2017 newsletter, Stillwater provided Part 3 of our...
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Stillwater’s View of the California Low Carbon Fuel Standard

January 9, 2018

At a January 9, 2018, public hearing in the Washington State House Committee on Environment, Stillwater president Dave Hackett presented comments on HB 2338, an act relating to reducing greenhouse gas emissions associated with transportation fuels by introducing an LCFS program in that state. You can view a PDF of Dave’s presentation here and a video of the panel here.

The Hidden Taxes in Gasoline and Diesel Prices

December 12, 2017

In the first quarter of 2017, CARB reported the first quarter of net deficits generated in the program. As the carbon intensity standards become more stringent, the demand for LCFS credits will increase significantly in 2018 and continue in to 2019 and 2020. The credit bank that has built up will be drawn down, causing the price of LCFS credits...
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IMO 2020 Part 3:  Refiners’ Perspective

November 16, 2017 , ,

November 16, 2017 by Ralph Grimmer, James Ahrens, and Leigh Noda The International Maritime Organization (IMO) is moving forward with a marked reduction from 3.5% to 0.5% in the maximum sulfur content of marine fuel (bunker fuel oil) on January 1, 2020. In our October newsletter, Stillwater provided Part 2 of our series on this “IMO 2020 Rule”, focusing on...
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War Story: Operation Iron Lady

November 15, 2017 ,

November 15, 2017 By Jessica Loomis In February of 1991, Senior Associate Leigh Noda was working for ARCO as the manager of business and technology in ARCO’s flagship refinery in Carson, California. One afternoon, the refinery’s manager called Leigh into his office with a very special project. Ronald Reagan was turning 80 years old, and the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library...
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Update: How much “Ethanol-Free” gasoline is out there?

November 13, 2017

November 11, 2017 By David Hackett, President Last year, we at Stillwater offered a review of the state of ethanol-free (or E0) gasoline in the U.S. Since then, we’ve learned a great deal about the market which we will share in this updated article. We start with some background: The Federal Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) requires increasing levels of renewable...
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California Carbon Info: California Emissions Decline Faster than Cap in 2016

November 6, 2017 , , , ,

As the passage of AB 398 has strengthened and extended California’s Cap and Trade program, we think our readers will benefit from a spotlight on the trends in the carbon credit market. We will be featuring guest articles on California’s Cap and Trade program from our friends at CaliforniaCarbon.info. CaliforniaCarbon.info is a comprehensive information service covering the Western Climate Initiative...
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War Story: Under Pressure

October 11, 2017 ,

October 11, 2017 By Jessica Loomis In the late 1990s, Stillwater Senior Associate James Ahrens was working in the crude oil supply, trading, and transportation division at Mobil as a supply optimization coordinator for the Beaumont refinery. The fuels crude unit at the refinery typically ran a slate of heavy sour crude oil that left the top of the atmospheric...
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IMO 2020 Part 2: Shipowners’ Perspective

October 11, 2017 , ,

October 12, 2017 by Ralph Grimmer and Michael Myers Stillwater is following the progress and impact of the International Maritime Organization’s Global Maximum Sulfur Content of Marine Fuel Rule, or IMO 2020. Our first article, IMO 2020 Part 1: The evolution of the marine sulfur regulation, appeared on the website in September 2017.  The International Maritime Organization (IMO) is moving...
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Jones Act 101: Maritime protectionism and transportation fuels

October 10, 2017 , ,

October 10, 2017 by Kendra Seymour As often happens in the aftermath of natural disasters, there has been increased coverage in the last month debating the merits of a 97-year-old law which affects delivery of goods to U.S. shores. You’ve likely heard talk about the Jones Act, but do you know what it is and how it affects disaster-struck areas...
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Steel Tank Conference Presentation

September 28, 2017

Stillwater Associate Barry Schaps’ presentation at the STI/SPFA conference on September 27, 2017. This presentation explains the transportation fuels supply chain, outlines the impact of the U.S. shale boom on supply and demand, and discusses the changing regulatory landscape. You can download a copy of his presentation here.

After the Deluge: Gasoline supply constraints following Harvey and Irma

September 14, 2017

September 13, 2017 Our hearts go out to our friends and colleagues in Texas and Florida as they start to rebuild after the destruction from Hurricanes Harvey and Irma. Stillwater’s Houston-area associates were able to weather Hurricane Harvey in good shape, managing to stay safe and dry while helping their neighbors. According to Barry Schaps, the official rain gauge nearest...
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IMO 2020 Part 1: The evolution of the marine sulfur regulation

September 14, 2017 , ,

September 13, 2017 by Ralph Grimmer Stillwater is following the progress and impact of the International Maritime Organization’s Global Maximum Sulfur Content of Marine Fuel Rule, or IMO 2020. This is our first article in the series. Our second article, IMO 2020 Part 2: Shipowners’ Perspective, appeared on the website in October 2017.  The International Maritime Organization (IMO) is moving...
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California Carbon Info: Analyzing California’s offset demand

September 13, 2017 , , , ,

As the passage of AB 398 has strengthened and extended California’s Cap and Trade program, we think our readers will benefit from a spotlight on the trends in the carbon credit market. Starting this month, we will be featuring guest articles on California’s Cap and Trade program from our friends at CaliforniaCarbon.info. CaliforniaCarbon.info is a comprehensive information service covering the...
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What the Frack is Happening in Colorado? A Look Inside Colorado’s Hydraulic Fracking Phenomenon

July 12, 2017 ,

July 12, 2017 By Jessica Loomis The word “fracking” is as tied to the state of Colorado these days as “skiing”, “mountains” and “snow”. Fracking is the process of drilling vertically or horizontally far below the surface to inject water, sand. and chemicals at a very high pressure into rocks that are believed to have crude oil and natural gas...
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The RFS Point of Obligation Part 3: Will moving the point of obligation significantly increase the use of renewable fuels?

July 12, 2017 ,

July 12, 2017 by Michael Leister As we continue our RFS Point of Obligation series, we look at the RIN obligations calculated in the simple example last month using 100,000 gallons of gasoline and 50,000 gallons of diesel, we need to remember typical refineries produce much larger volumes of these products.  A typical refinery processes around 150,000 barrels per day...
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War Stories: The Crisis of Hurricane Katrina

July 12, 2017

July 12, 2017 By Jessica Loomis In August 2005, Stillwater Associate Barry Schaps was working for Shell Oil Company as the General Manager of Supply Planning and Logistics. At the time, Barry’s son was getting ready to begin his first year at Tulane University in New Orleans, so Barry and his family were in town for the school’s freshman orientation....
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Forecasting LCFS Credit Prices

June 22, 2017 ,

Dave Hackett’s presentation to CARB’s June 22, 2017 board meeting. Dave provided comments to the board on the forecasted rising LCFS cost, or hidden tax, in gasoline and diesel price. This analysis first appeared in Stillwater’s June 2017 Monthly LCFS Newsletter. You can download a copy of the presentation here.

War Stories: Leigh Noda’s Advice that Can’t be Erased

June 7, 2017 ,

June 7, 2017 by Jessica Loomis In 1972, young Leigh Noda had just begun his career as a refinery engineer with Atlantic Richfield Company. It would be the beginning of a 28-year long journey with the company, but as a young man just starting out, Leigh felt overwhelmed and in awe of the Operations Supervisor whom he worked for as...
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The RFS Point of Obligation Part 2: How are RINs generated and RFS compliance achieved?

June 6, 2017 , ,

June 6, 2017 by Michael Leister Last month in the first edition in our RFS Point of Obligation series, we discussed the general RFS rules, this month we get more specific about RIN generation and RFS Compliance.  When a renewable fuel producer like an ethanol production facility or biomass-based diesel manufacturing plant produces a compliant renewable fuel, the renewable fuel...
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California’s 2030 Scoping Plan: Changes for the Transportation Fuels Sector

June 6, 2017 , ,

June 6, 2017 by Kendra Seymour Introduction Last week President Trump withdrew the U.S. from the historic Paris Climate Agreement, signaling a lack of commitment at the federal level to combatting climate change. Many states, municipalities, and companies, however, have voiced continued support for the Paris Agreement and have affirmed their intention to fulfill the tenets of the Agreement. Sub-national...
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War Stories: Where in the World is Jim Langley?

May 16, 2017 ,

May 1, 2017 by Jessica Loomis For this edition of War Stories, we interviewed Senior Associate Jim Langley about one of his international projects. Several years ago, Jim was retained by a Latin American oil and refining company to evaluate two environmentally driven process technologies. One was the old, proven technology that accomplished 95% of the client’s objectives, the other...
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RFS Point of Obligation Part 1: How Does the RFS Work?

May 16, 2017 , ,

May 1, 2017 by Michael Leister For the past year or more, there has been a lot of discussion in the transportation fuels industry on moving the current Renewable Fuels Standard 2 (RFS2) point of obligation to the point where rack blending occurs. Currently the point of obligation is with refiners and importers, however the RINs for RFS compliance are...
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