Mid-Week Review – February 3, 2021

U.S. refiners talk up renewable projects after a year of lousy fuel demand

Following a year of grim losses amid pandemic lockdowns that dented demand for fuel as people stuck close to home, the largest U.S. independent refiners are promoting plans to boost production of renewable fuels. Renewable fuels represent a silver lining for refiners under threat of being left behind by the shift to electric vehicles and away from fossil fuel processing. As the big refining companies in recent days reported year-end results, executives devoted plenty of time to discussing how they will create fuels that emit fewer emissions that contribute to global warming. Click Here to read more from Reuters.

Sneak Peek: What’s in the EIA’s Annual Energy Outlook?

The United States will likely take years to return to 2019 levels of energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions following the impact of COVID-19 on the U.S. economy and global energy sector, according to projections in the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) Annual Energy Outlook 2021 (AEO2021), which will be released later today. Click Here to read more from the EIA’s Today in Energy.

Northeastern US Digging Out From Major Snowstorm

People of the northeastern U.S. shoveled themselves out Feb. 2 after a two-day snowstorm that shut down public transport, canceled flights and closed coronavirus vaccination sites. Some bands of snow were still moving through parts of Maine and Pennsylvania in the morning, but the worst was over, with more than 30 inches in parts of New Jersey and just a few inches in Boston. Click Here to read more from Transport Topics.

Manufacturing and freight drive diesel-led oil recovery

U.S. consumption of distillate fuel oil used as diesel and heating oil has recovered close to its pre-epidemic level, boosted by a rebound in manufacturing output and freight movements since the first wave of coronavirus. The strong recovery in diesel stands in contrast to a weaker upturn in gasoline and especially jet fuel, which remain hampered by the persistence of remote working as well as restrictions on leisure services and passenger aviation. Similar distillate-led recoveries are also underway across the major economies of Europe and Asia, driven by the global resurgence in industrial production, raw materials, and merchandise movements. Click Here to read more from Hydrocarbon Processing.