How much crude oil makes a gallon of gas?
Petroleum refineries in the United States produce about 19 to 20 gallons of motor gasoline and 11 to 12 gallons of ultra-low sulfur distillate fuel oil (most of which is sold as diesel fuel and in several states as heating oil) from one 42-gallon barrel of crude oil.
How much does it cost to refine gasoline? The cost to refine gasoline varies between 40 cents and 70 cents per gallon, depending on various factors.
A barrel of oil equivalent has a LHV of about 35.6 kWh/gal which is very close to the 35.3 kWh/gal LHV figure for a typical gasoline. So 15% x 15% x 35.6 kWh/gal is about 0.8 kWh/gallon of actual electrical energy use.
Analysts cited by NPR project that if oil hits $200, the retail price of gas would average $5.84 in the US.
About 45 percent of a typical barrel of crude oil is refined into gasoline. An additional 29 percent is refined to diesel fuel. The remaining oil is used to make plastics and other products (see image Products made from a barrel of crude oil, 2016).
Gas retailers receive a fraction of the price listed on the sign–their net profit per gallon is around $0.03-$0.07–after factoring in costs like labor, utilities, insurance, and credit card transaction fees. This puts the net profit margin of a gas station at less than two percent.
Why Are Gas Prices Still High? High demand for crude oil and low supply pushed gas prices upward this year.
“Your fuel is a volume thing. You've got to sell a lot of fuel to make a little bit of money off it.” “A little” as in 15 cents a gallon on average, according to the National Association of Convenience Stores. About 80 percent of the gas purchased in the U.S. is sold by convenience stores like Nordman's.
Of course, this can vary depending on a host of factors. In a low inventory and high demand situation the process could be fast-tracked to just two weeks. In comparison, delays with refinery machinery, trans-Atlantic shipments and subpar product could push the timeline forward to several months.
It's safe to assume that under a variety of circumstances, one gallon of gasoline allows you to drive between 20 to 30 miles. Keep in mind, however, that driving on empty is not recommended and you should avoid letting your fuel level drop below a quarter of a tank.
Where does US get gas?
The top five source countries of U.S. gross petroleum imports in 2021 were Canada, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, and Colombia. Note: Ranking in the table is based on gross imports by country of origin. Net import volumes in the table may not equal gross imports minus exports because of independent rounding of data.
$150 oil would translate to $5 gas
Veteran energy analyst Tom Kloza, president of the Oil Price Information Service, said $150 oil would roughly translate to $5-a-gallon gasoline nationally.
According to a scenario developed and modeled by The Conference Board, the economic implications of US$200 oil are acute. Inflation would spike around the world and economic growth would slow. Already high inflation rates in places like the United States and the Eurozone would rise even higher.
If oil prices reach $200 a barrel, the negative impact on economic growth in the US might be roughly 2%. History suggests that the global economy suffers and enters into stagflation when oil prices rise wildly.
Oil Reserves in the United States
The United States has proven reserves equivalent to 4.9 times its annual consumption. This means that, without imports, there would be about 5 years of oil left (at current consumption levels and excluding unproven reserves).
U.S. petroleum refineries make gasoline and other petroleum products from crude oil and other liquids that are produced in the United States or imported from other countries.
| # | Country | Yearly Gallons Per Capita |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | United States | 934.3 |
| 2 | China | 138.7 |
| 3 | India | 51.4 |
| 4 | Japan | 481.5 |
Petroleum refineries in the United States produce about 19 to 20 gallons of motor gasoline and 11 to 12 gallons of ultra-low sulfur distillate fuel oil (most of which is sold as diesel fuel and in several states as heating oil) from one 42-gallon barrel of crude oil.
reporting that the average national gas price reached a new high of $4.37 per gallon last week, Big Oil has been making historic profits. In the first three months of 2022, ExxonMobil pocketed $5.5 billion after taxes; Chevron gained $6.3 billion; and ConocoPhillips made $5.8 billion.
About $0.05/gallon is profit for refineries turning that crude oil into gasoline. That's the ExxonMobil and Shell's of the world as well. And that gas station of yours? Well the retailers (including distributors and marketers) on average made about $0.04/gallon in profit.
Who controls the price of gas?
Gasoline prices are determined largely by the laws of supply and demand. Gasoline prices cover the cost of acquiring and refining crude oil as well as distributing and marketing the gasoline, in addition to state and federal taxes. Gas prices also respond to geopolitical events that impact the oil market.
But there's a wide range in the price paid by country. Residents of Hong Kong pay the highest international gas prices, with one gallon setting them back $10.97. Norway has the second-highest gas prices at $9.64 per gallon, followed by Denmark where gas costs an average $9.32 per gallon.
Affordability of fuel
At 7.6 U.S. dollars per gallon or more, gasoline is particularly expensive in Iceland, Norway, Denmark, Greece, Finland, and the Netherlands.
For example, ExxonMobil pulled in nearly $20 billion in profit. Chevron took in more than $11 billion, Shell $9.5 billion, BP over eight billion. And, today, the world's largest oil company, Saudi Aramco, reported making $42 billion this quarter.
Generally, the markup (or “margin”) on a gallon of gas is about 15 cents per gallon (gross profit before expenses). Factoring in expenses, which include rent, utilities, freight, labor and credit card fees, a retailer is left with about 2 cents per gallon in profit.