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Oct 2, 2015

TRUCKING COSTS * USA: Fuel, largest marginal one

* Virginia - Equipment, driver pay push operating costs higher, ATRI analysis says
-- Fuel now consistently represents the largest share of total average marginal cost for motor carriers, followed by driver wages and equipment lease or purchase payments... Driver benefits, repair and maintenance, insurance premiums, permits and licenses, tires, and toll costs have each consistently represented 10 percent or less of average total marginal costs throughout the seven years of this research... Falling fuel prices weren’t enough to offset more expensive equipment and driver pay increases, so the cost of trucking rose again last year, according to latest benchmarking report from the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI)... Released Tuesday, the 2015 update to An Analysis of the Operational Costs of Trucking puts the average marginal cost per mile in 2014 at $1.703, about 3 cents higher than 2013. And the upward trend is expected to continue... 
(Image: Share of Total Average Marginal Cost, 2008-2014)  --   Arlington, VA, USA - Fleet Owner, by Kevin Jones - Sep 29, 2015

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Apr 19, 2015

FUEL COSTS * USA: Truckers sue to end biodiesel mandate - * Gas Technology: NGV trucking

* Minnesota - 10 percent blend has hurt trucking firms, carmakers and the oil industry
-- Minnesota truckers and other interests sued Minnesota on Friday seeking to end the state’s requirement that diesel sold at the pump contain 10 percent biodiesel... The lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Minnesota alleges that the state mandate is in conflict with federal clean air and renewable fuels laws. The suit asks for a permanent injunction barring enforcement of the existing mandate and any future expansion of a higher biodiesel ratio... In court papers, the 690-member Minnesota Trucking Association alleged that the mandate drives up the price of diesel fuel and forces trucking companies to ignore truck engine warranties that specify using no more than B-5, or 5 percent ­biodiesel... Last July, the state blending ratio increased from 5 percent to 10 percent for part of the year, and eventually could rise to 20 percent. It remains at B-5 from October to March to reduce the risk of fuel thickening into jelly during cold months... Joining the trucker group in the suit are the Minnesota Automobile Dealers Association, Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, American Petroleum Institute, and American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers. Auto dealers and makers contend they lose sales and loyal customers and incur higher warranty costs because of the mandate, while petroleum companies say they face additional costs to distribute B-10 in Minnesota... 
(Photo: GLEN STUBBE • Star Tribune -One trucker said the mandate added 3 cents a gallon to diesel prices)  --  St. Paul, MINN, USA - The Star Tribune, by DAVID SHAFFER - April 17, 2015


* DC -   NGV trucking: More fueling points, new vehicles.
  -- Rapid refueling, whether LNG or CNG is a requirement for a successful OTR natural gas site. More of these facilities are being installed across the U.S.A. and Canada. Many offer a choice between CNG and LNG. It has long been recognized that over-the-road (OTR) trucking represents a major opportunity to replace petroleum fuels with natural gas... CNG is usually compressed at the delivery site from pipeline-delivered natural gas, while LNG is more commonly delivered by tanker to the refueling point. Delivered cost of either natural gas fuel is typically one-half to two-thirds the price of the equivalent gallons of diesel fuel. Fuel costs are generally cited as gallons-of-diesel-equivalent (GDE). Because it need to be trucked to the dispensing site, and because of the energy cost of the liquefaction process, LNG is typically somewhat more expensive than CNG. Estimates of the cost differential range from 25 cents to as much as 75 cents GDE... Payback for the higher cost of a natural gas tractor can range from one to three years, depending on local fuel costs and miles driven. If, as Lindholm projects, natural gas vehicle costs continue to decline proportionate to diesel vehicles, the paybacks could be even shorter. Currently the price of diesel fuel is somewhat depressed because of lower crude oil prices. How long this will continue is debatable. Judd Cook from Questar Fueling indicates that the fuel price differential is a major driver in the decision to switch to natural gas, and some truckers are watching trends. At the current time, he feels the typical paybacks are 18 to 24 months, which is enough to continue to stimulate interest... 
(Image Courtesy U.S. Department of Energy: Fast fill popup truck slider)  --  Washington, DC, USA - Plant Engineering - 17 April 2015


* Opportunities in a lower fuel price environment

-- Analysts at business management consulting firm Strategy (formerly Booz &  Co.), suggested that fleets take the opportunity to adjust their networks to focus more on speed of delivery in cases where there's been some trade-off for fuel costs, and go after some business that's currently moving on rail... In a report on "The Impact of Reduced Oil Prices on the Transportation Sector," Andrew Tipping, Andrew Schmahl and Fred Duiven point out that assuming 5 to 7 mpg and an oil price of $60 to $80 per barrel, the line-haul cost per container mile is $1.82 for trucks versus $0.37 for rail, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. "Lower oil prices, however, will narrow that relative price gap" ... Since reduced fuel costs allow trucking to be more competitive compared with rail, they suggest trucking companies look to recapture customers they may have previously lost when oil prices were higher. In fact, they say, it's already been happening... 
 (Photo: A worldwide glut of oil is driving down gas prices at the pump)  --  TruckingInfo,by Deborah Lockridge - April 17, 2015

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Dec 12, 2014

TRUCK FUEL SAVINGS * USA: Truckers vie with shippers for

* Virginia - Oil rout puts $24 billion of truck fuel savings in play

Arlington,VA,USA -Bloomberg News, by Thomas Black -December 11, 2014: -- Fuel is the largest expense for long-haul trucking companies before the surcharges, followed closely by labor, said Bob Costello, chief economist for... The American Trucking Associations calculates that each 1-cent drop spurs industrywide annual fuel savings of $350 million. Diesel last week averaged $2.15 a gallon, down from $2.85 in the last 12 months. About 85 percent of the savings goes to shippers through lower fuel surcharges... That may soften shippers’ resistance to higher rates that trucking companies say they need to cover rising expenses for salaries, health care and new regulations that limit driving hours. Unlike previous times when fuel prices fell, stronger economic growth is increasing demand for cargo space while drivers are scarce, which spurs higher rates...

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Feb 23, 2012

FUEL COSTS * UK

* Fuel duty action could save economy £3.6 billion, says FTA

London,En,UK -Transport Engineer. by Brian Tinham -20 Feb 2012: -- The Freight Transport Association (FTA) has called on the Chancellor to cut fuel duty by at least five pence per litre and to scrap the increase planned for August... In its pre-budget submission to the Treasury, the trade body argues that such action could save consumers and businesses £3.6 billion and prove to be a vital shot in the arm for the UK's economy... Following sustained lobbying by FTA and its partners in the Fair Fuel UK campaign, the last budget saw two planned increases in fuel duty deferred and an unprecedented cut in fuel duty of 1ppl – a move that saved businesses some £500 million... However, despite this success, the price of diesel increased by 7ppl in 2011, adding £3,284 to the annual operating cost of a typical 44 tonne articulated vehicle...

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Aug 14, 2009

FUEL'S COST STUDY * USA - California said to be at critical stage in fuel rates

San Francisco,CAL,USA -Logistics Management, by Patrick Burnson -12 Aug 2009: -- Leading California economists and major employers released a new study analyzing the state’s crippling fuel costs and its impact on logistics management... According to the comprehensive report done in behalf of “Fueling California,” a new nonprofit consumer alliance comprising some of the nation’s largest transportation and logistics providers, the issue has a direct bearing on “job flight. And not only in the transportation sector,” said Dr. Wallace Walrod, president of the Orange County Business Council. “Although that is certainly a major concern. The fact is, California is losing jobs in to other states because it is simply too expensive to move goods here”... “Out of this understanding, new policy initiatives can be developed which can help alleviate future “fuel spikes” caused by California’s differences from other state and national policies,” said the report... Spokesmen added that although price levels rise and fall over time, Energy Information Administration (EIA) (U.S. Department of Energy) data indicate that average retail gasoline prices are routinely much higher in California...

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May 22, 2009

FUEL COSTS * USA - No Gas Tax Hike, Says LaHood

Transportation secretary says Obama administration will not push to hike fuel taxes

Washington,D.C.,USA -The Journal of Commerce Online, by John D. Boyd -May 21, 2009: -- The Obama administration does not favor raising the federal tax on motor vehicle fuels as a way to bolster highway spending accounts, said Transportation Secretary, Ray LaHood... LaHood said this is not the time, during an economic downturn, to be talking about raising gas taxes... But since the Highway Trust Fund receipts are low, he said “we need to think outside the box” on ways to fund needed projects, and explore such things as an infrastructure bank, tolling and joint public-private spending efforts... (JoC file photo)

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May 19, 2009

TRUCKING COSTS * Australia - Fuel increase to add 15k to

Trucking operators may soon be paying close to 10 cents more a litre for fuel, leading to a massive increase in running costs and consumer goods

Brisbane,QLD,Australia -QBR -19 May 2009: -- ... The State Government is considering axing the State’s 8.35 cents per litre Fuel Scheme Subsidy in an attempt to restore the State’s coffers which have been ravaged by the global financial crisis... Premier, Anna Bligh, and Treasurer, Andrew Fraser, have refused to guarantee the future of the $541 million subsidy, prompting concerns for the future of small companies using B-doubles... If the fuel scheme is abolished, the Queensland Trucking Association claims B-double operators’ fuel costs will blow out by $15,000, coinciding with a $3000 jump in registration fees nationwide from July... (Picture: roadtransport: Big lorry by Brian)

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Apr 2, 2009

FUEL COSTS * USA - Bracing for Higher One, Again

More stringent pollution regulations for ships could take a toll on trucks

Newark,NJ,USA -The Journal of Commerce Magazine, by John Gallagher -Mar 30, 2009: -- ... Lawmakers on Capitol Hill are reviewing legislation calling for tougher pollution standards on cargo and container ships that would require ocean vessels to tap the distillate fuel supply already used by the trucking industry for low-sulfur diesel... James Cannon, an alternative fuels expert and president of Energy Futures, said “Demand is very high, and supply is low in the distillate fuel market, and we’re now talking about an entire new industry coming in that’s already bigger globally than the airline industry. Of course, (the trucking industry) has reason to be concerned.”... In 2006, motor carriers began a transition to ultra-low sulfur diesel that cut sulfur emissions by 97 percent from 500 parts per million to 15 ppm. The switch was necessary to support new emissions control equipment upgrades on diesel trucks in 2007 and again next year... The container lines that feed the domestic trucking industry know that the switch to cleaner-burning fuel is inevitable, but their emissions standards so far have been virtually unregulated. Under current International Maritime Organization regulations, bunker fuel is capped at 4.5 percent sulfur content. By contrast, diesel fuel for land-based carriers in the United States, western Europe and other countries has a sulfur content of 0.1 percent to 0.15 percent... (Photo from environmentallaw.files.wordpress.com: Large ships are major sources of air pollution along the Southern California coast)


* EPA Plans Clean-Air Zones - Ships to burn cleaner fuels within 230 miles of coasts

Washington,DC,USA -The Journal of Commerce, by Joseph Bonney -Mar 30, 2009: -- The Environmental Protection Agency on March 30 proposed creation of an emissions control area that would require ships to burn cleaner fuels within 230 miles (200 nautical miles) of U.S. coasts... EPA Administrator Lisa P. Jackson, speaking Monday at Port Newark, N.J., said the proposal was submitted Friday to the International Maritime Organization...

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May 20, 2008

HIGHER FUEL COSTS * China - Diesel Stockpiling Boosting Prices, Journal Says

U.S. Exporting More Distillates

New York,NY,USA -The Wall Street Journal/Transport Topics -19 May 2008: -- The worldwide spike in diesel prices is being driven in part by China’s stockpiling of the fuel in advance of this summer Olympics, which it is hosting, and the United States is exporting more diesel to the world market, the Wall Street Journal reported Monday... China is stockpiling in advance of the games, which start in August, and also will need more diesel and distillates to help rebuild after last week’s big earthquake in its Sichuan province, reported... The country is stockpiling the fuel in part in case it needs to rely on backup generators if its power grid falters this summer, the Journal said...

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May 7, 2008

FUEL COST CRISIS * USA - Hijacker targets big rig loading up with diesel

A hijacker made off with a tanker truck just as the driver was topping off the load of diesel fuel, authorities said Tuesday

Houston,TX,USA -The Houston Chronicle, by MIKE GLENN -May 6, 2008: -- ... The driver was pulling away from a fueling station along Texas 225 about 3 a.m. Monday when a man, possibly armed with a pistol, jumped into the cab, authorities said... He told the driver to head toward the South Loop and the Gulf Freeway and later switched seats before ordering the driver out of the vehicle, Houston police said... The truck — minus the fuel — will probably be found within the next few days, Jim Sutton, director of Washington, D.C.-based Highway Watch, part of the American Trucking Associations said... How much fuel the driver was carrying was unknown. On Tuesday, the average price for a gallon of diesel in Houston was $4.125... If the truck isn't found, Sutton said it will probably be cannibalized for parts... Whoever took the truck probably has some behind the wheel experience with 18-wheelers, Sutton said. "It takes some skill driving those big tanker trucks," he said...

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Apr 30, 2008

FUEL COST BILL * USA - New bill to help truckers deal with diesel fuel costs

Independent truckers praise new legislation

Grain Valley,Mo,USA -Truck Net, by Craig Zwiener -April 25, 2008: -- Small business truckers across America are praising legislation introduced today by U.S. Senators Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) and Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) that will protect shippers, truckers and consumers from being exploited by unscrupulous supply chain middlemen in the trucking industry. The “Truthful Reliable Understanding of Consumer Costs” act or TRUCC Act will require that 100 percent of fuel surcharges levied on shipping customers be passed through to whoever actually pays for the fuel to haul the shipper’s goods – in most cases, that’s truckers... Independent, small business truckers seldom deal directly with shipping customers. Most of the freight loads they haul are acquired through third-party logistics companies or through larger trucking companies they are leased to as independent contractors. Mid-size trucking firms often have contracts with shippers for “front hauls,” but depend entirely on brokers for “back hauls.”... Small and mid-sized trucking firms that comprise the vast majority of the trucking industry have been particularly hard hit by record high diesel prices...


* Log trucker optimistic about TRUCC Act following DC protest

Grain Valley,MO,USA -Land Line Magazine -April 29, 2008: -- One of the organizers of a truck convoy to Washington, DC, said there is optimism that a fuel surcharge bill in Congress will be passed into law... After circling the Capitol building on Monday, April 28 in protest of high fuel prices, Maine logging trucker Larry Sidelinger and others met with Sen. Olympia Snowe, who sponsored the bill... Sidelinger said, “I think it was a pretty productive day. I think the constituents in the other parts of the country need to do what we did, which is get on board with their politicians and their legislators and get them on board with the program here.” ...

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Apr 18, 2008

REPORT * USA - The state Attorney General says he's found out why gas prices are so high

Attorney General Releases Results of Gas Price Investigation

Kennewick,Wash,USA -KNDO -April 18, 2008: -- The state Attorney General says he's found out why gas prices are so high... AG Rob McKenna released his findings in a startling report this afternoon highlighting reasons our state's high gas prices... Among them, Washington's significant gas tax and the rising difference between the refining cost and retail prices... The average price for gas in Tri-Cities is $3.59...

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Apr 13, 2008

FUEL COST SOLUTION * USA - Truckers finding cheaper diesel south of the border

... bought about 18 gallons of diesel for just under $38, paying 5.76 pesos per liter, or about $2.07 a gallon...

Reynosa,Tamaulipas,MEX -The Valley Morning Star (TX,USA), by JARED TAYLOR and KYLE ARNOLD -April 11, 2008: -- Juan Saldaña rolled his truck into the 7-Eleven along Federal Highway 2, on his way to McAllen to pick up his trailer... Wearing a Texas Rangers baseball cap, the Monterrey-based truck driver would have had enough fuel to make the trip there, but he decided to top off his tanks anyway... Saldaña bought about 18 gallons of diesel for just under $38, paying 5.76 pesos per liter, or about $2.07 a gallon. Had he waited until he crossed the Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge to top off, he would have paid about $72 for the same quantity of diesel... Diesel cost $3.99 per gallon Thursday at many stations in the Rio Grande Valley... More and more U.S. truckers and other motorists are taking advantage of the cheaper fuel in Mexico, according to one filling station owner in Reynosa... Edinburg business owner Alex Hernandez runs a portable toilet company. He considered driving a tanker to Reynosa to pick up fuel for his 10-truck fleet... Unfortunately for Hernandez, though, the fuel can't be exported without paying a hefty tariff... "I'm just trying to find a way to lower my costs," he said... (Photo by Nathan Lambrecht/The Monitor - Truckers finding cheaper diesel south of the border
Juan Saldana fills up his truck with diesel at a PEMEX before crossing the Pharr-Reynosa International Bridge into the United States on Thursday afternoon)

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Apr 6, 2008

FUEL COSTS SOLUTIONS* USA - Survey Says: Americans Just Want to Keep on Trucking

What Americans really want is technology investment to cut their fuel bill

New York,NY,USA -The Wall Street Journal, by Ana Campoy -April 4, 2008: -- ... At least that’s what a recent survey suggests... When asked which kind of technology should get the highest priority in terms of investment dollars over the next decade, 37% picked “fuel efficiency and alternative fuels.”... That beat all other answers, including medicine, the environment, and security and defense... And who’s pining for cheaper gas? Men—especially those who can remember when it cost less than a buck a gallon. Some 42% of the over-55 crowd chose fuel-technology as their priority, compared with 31% of the 18-34 year-old demographic. And 43% of men voted for more fuels; women favored more cash for medical technology... The Fairfax County Economic Development Authority, a public agency that promotes business in that Virginia county, commissioned the survey by Ipsos Public Affairs...

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Feb 28, 2008

Trucking group Warns * USA - soaring diesel costs will be passed on

Oklahoma,OK ,USA -The Journal Recordby Jerry Shottenkirk -February 28, 2008: -- Diesel fuel prices on Wednesday soared to a record high for the second consecutive day, and the trucking industry has no choice but to pass some of the costs, said Dan Case, executive director of the Oklahoma Trucking Association... The national average jumped to $3.61 per gallon, and Oklahoma also reached an all-time state high of $3.44 per gallon... Case said truck transport has not decreased and probably won’t anytime soon... Trucks usually have tanks that hold 300 gallons of fuel... The saver for trucker is a fuel surcharge, which is costly to manufacturers, wholesalers and retailers, and that cost likely is handled by the consumer... Truckers get about five miles to the gallon, or about 1,500 miles per tank full... (Photo by Jennifer Pitts - Semitrucks pull into the JRS truck stop on Reno Wednesday)

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Jan 9, 2008

FUEL COSTS * Austria - Oil rises after decline overnight

Vienna,Austria -The Trucker News Services, by GEORGE JAHN -8 Jan 2008: -- Oil prices rose robustly Tuesday, paring the losses of the previous session over worries about the U.S. economy that left the market at a two-week low... Futures were supported by expectations a midweek U.S. report on oil inventories would show crude stockpiles fell for the eighth straight week... Brent crude for February delivery rose 13 cents to $94.52 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange in London... Heating oil and gasoline futures spiked more than 4 cents to fetch $2.6130 and $2.4744 a gallon (3.8 liters)... Natural gas futures rose 1.6 cents to $7.916 per 1,000 cubic feet... (Photo: BACK ON THE ROLLER COASTER: Oil prices on the rise, again, after a two-week low)


* UK - Counting the cost of fuel

London,UK -Road Transport -9 January 2008: -- A succession of diesel price increases has plagued the industry in recent months, mainly as a result of the rise in the cost of crude, now hovering around the $100/barrel mark, but also due to the Chancellor's 2p/litre surcharge introduced in October 2007. Since our last published Cost Tables, sponsored by Daf, the national average price of diesel at the pump has risen nearly 16%. This increase has more than wiped out the 5% profit margin for our sample 40- and 44-tonners covering 100,000 miles annually, their respective charge-per-mile figures increasing from 137.10p to 144.82p and from 147.93p to 156.30p... The fuel cost per mile for these vehicles is now a hefty 53.32p for the 40-tonner and 57.77p for the maximum weight six-axle rig, producing annual diesel bills of £53,320 and £57,770 respectively. Fuel as a percentage of the total operating cost is now approaching 40% for both vehicles. The picture is almost as grim at lower weights: the charge-per-mile figure for our 18-tonner covering 60,000 miles a year increasing 4% - the industry's typical profit margin...

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Jan 2, 2008

Crude Oil * USA - Hits $100 a Barrel

Crude oil futures hit $100 a barrel Wednesday for the first time, as global petroleum demand continued to outstrip supplies...

New York,NY,USA -The Associated Press/ Transport Topics (VA,USA) -2 Jan 2007: -- Benchmark light sweet crude oil futures rose $4.02 to $100 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, before slipping back under that level... Surging economies in China and India have pushed petroleum prices to record high levels in the past year, and this week's violence in Nigeria, a major oil producer, helped push prices higher... Oil’s previous record closing price was $98.18 a barrel, set on Nov. 23. That was followed Nov. 26 by a record price for retail diesel fuel of $3.444 a gallon... (Photo by Edouard Gluck/Blooomberg News)

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Dec 22, 2007

FUEL COSTS * USA - Increase in Diesel Prices Affect Truck Drivers

Huntington,WV,USA -WSAZ/TV, by Michael Wooten -Dec 21, 2007: -- In some places gas prices are down 50 to 75 cents a gallon from the all-time high, giving people a few extra dollars in their pockets for Christmas. That’s for those who use gas and not diesel to fill their tanks... However, pumped up prices is the rough reality for truckers as diesel prices hit record highs... Until a few years ago, that was true, but not any more. Thanks to higher demand, a transition to low-sulfur fuel and slightly higher taxes, diesel now costs more... Prices are even higher in the winter due to rising demand for heating oil, which is refined in much the same way as diesel... Diesel prices vary widely in our region. Kentucky's average is $3.30 a gallon. In Ohio it costs 15 cents more on the gallon and in West Virginia prepare to pay $3.52 a gallon. Only about a dozen states have higher averages... David Grier, a truck driver, doesn't see any relief in his rear-view mirror... This affects more than just truck drivers... Millions of cars, lights trucks and SUV’s also use diesel, and those drivers are hit especially hard... The forecast isn't promising for diesel drivers. Prices are expected to slightly increase throughout the next few months... (SEE VIDEO)

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Dec 3, 2007

FUEL COSTS * USA - $100 Oil Prices Could Bolster Green Efforts

High oil could spur inflation, hold back consumer spending

NY-USA -Business Week -November 21, 2007: -- Economy already shaky w/ credit mess, retreating Wall Street. But optimists say high oil prices could energize environmental efforts... High oil prices could jolt consumers into using less energy... Also motivate lawmakers to fund renewable energy and offer incentives... Only problem: determining which alternative energy source is best to fund. Critics disagree on pros/cons of ethanol, hydrogen, electric... In the long run, businesses see benefits of going green... High oil prices also spur more oil exploration, drilling... (Picture from ValdezGas: Is to commence Drilling for Gas usingAnsett Drilling and Exploration in the Surat Basin,Queensland.)

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Nov 20, 2007

FUEL TROUBLES * USA

* * Fuel costs push truckers toward brink

Lincoln,ME,USA -Bangor Daily News (Bangor,ME), by Nick Sambides Jr -November 19, 2007: -- Record diesel prices that reached $3.65 per gallon Saturday are pushing logging truckers into a state of emergency that could imperil Maine’s entire forestry products industry... State officials expressed fear Saturday that runaway fuel prices could force independent truckers — the forest product industry’s connective tissue, as they haul fiber to mills from the woods — to abruptly shut down, sparking a larger crisis within the industry and the state... Gov. John Baldacci and other officials are investigating ways to help truckers stay on the roads over the winter, including temporary suspension of gas taxes and some hauling regulations and bulk fuel buying, said John M. Kerry, director of the state’s Office of Energy Independence and Security... Landowners, loggers, logging company and mill owners, and independent truckers who attended said fuel prices are forcing them into shutdown mode... Independent logging truck operators might be the first to fall because they are smaller, but that means only that the rest of the industry has a little more time. With mostly diesel-powered equipment, all face the same crushing economic burden... Relief options state officials are considering or pursuing include: ... (Photo by Gabor Degre/Bangor Daily News: Albert Raymond of Kingman gets the papers on a load of wood from crane operator Rick Irish after he loaded the truck with hardwood in Mulunkus Township Thursday morning. Raymond said that fuel prices are rising so high that owner operators like himself are getting close to losing money if they keep their truck running)



* Not Your Father's Oil Crisis - World heading for 3rd oil crisis in generation
New York,NY,USA -The New York Times -November 9, 2007: -- Crises of 1970s, 1980s caused by supply interruptions. Today's oil shock created by demand from developing countries... Demand from China, India predicted to double in next 20 years. Expected to equal today's imports of US, Japan by 2030... Oil prices up 56% in 2007, up 365% in last 10 years. Economists, oil business veterans say prices can't go up forever... Global demand forecast to rise to 115M bbl/day by 2030, taxing world's current supply... "These prices are too high and will end up hurting everybody, producers and consumers alike", said Fatih Birol, chief economist, International Energy Agency... Search for new sources underway, face long lead times, high costs. Often hampered by geopolitics, natural disasters...

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