Diesel prices jump to $6.33 a gallon, 50 cents above prior record
Diesel prices reached $6.33 per gallon, $0.50 above the prior record, according to Tom Kloza of Gulf Oil. Kloza warned the next 100 days could be especially rough for fleets, owner‑operators and shippers. He cited the closure of Saudi Arabia’s East‑West pipeline, which could last 40 to 50 days, as a key supply squeeze.
Combined with earlier outages, the world has lost about 7 million barrels per day of refining capacity, mostly in Russia and the Persian Gulf. Truck‑stop fuel margins have risen from about $0.04 to roughly $0.07 per gallon, while retail pump prices usually sit $0.40 above cost. Only about 2% of fuel purchases at large travel centers are made at the retail pump price, with the rest flowing through discount programs and apps. Kloza said that if crude oil traded normally relative to diesel prices, it would fetch about $175 a barrel this morning. He said existing biodiesel and renewable diesel plants are running at full capacity given surging margins, and that new production could come online in months rather than the years needed to permit a conventional refinery.
“You know, you’re talking about $9 and $10 in Europe and you’re talking about $8.27 in California right now,” Tom Kloza, chief energy advisor at Gulf Oil said.
“for the first time in roughly seven to eight years, soybean oil — the primary feedstock for biodiesel and renewable diesel — dropped below the price of traditional diesel,” Tom Kloza, chief energy advisor at Gulf Oil said.
The closure of Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline is compounding an already strained supply picture. Combined with earlier losses, Kloza said the world has already shed about 7 million barrels per day of refining capacity, mostly in Russia and the Persian Gulf.
What we know
Diesel prices reached $6.33 per gallon — $0.50 above the prior record — and could climb further over the next 100 days, according to Tom Kloza, chief energy advisor at Gulf Oil.
Kloza said the shutdown — which Secretary of Energy Chris Wright described as lasting days, though Kloza suggested it could run 40 to 50 days — has prompted Saudi Arabia to suspend oil-loading for September deliveries to Europe.
Combined with earlier losses, Kloza said the world has already shed about 7 million barrels per day of refining capacity, mostly in Russia and the Persian Gulf.
Kloza noted that average truck-stop fuel margins have moved from about $0.04 per gallon to roughly $0.07, while retail pump prices typically run $0.40 over cost — meaning significant catch-up pricing is still ahead.
One piece of better news for the industry: for the first time in roughly seven to eight years, soybean oil — the primary feedstock for biodiesel and renewable diesel — dropped below the price of traditional diesel.