I will try to start at the beginning (sort of). First of all the ships you see at the terminals are not carrying gas. The super tankers and jumbo tankers are usually carrying crude oil. The smaller ships (T-2 tankers) that can carry around 100,000 barrels (1Bbl=42 gal) are used to carry the specialty products (fuel oil, Ave gas, lube oil base stock etc.) Most gas is transported by either pipeline or barge. The oil companies are the majority owners of the petroleum pipeline system in the US. A system so vast it can almost compare with the HWY system in the US. Southern Pacific is probably second.
You may see many different company ships loading or unloading at the same docks but the product is not all going to or coming from the same place. Chevron ships are pumping to Chevron tanks, Mobil to Mobil etc, etc,etc. These tanks may be miles away and not even visible but they are there.
Each refinery has its own buying group for furnishing crude to the refinery. They shop for price and availability. Crude is not just crude. Some crude’s are better for gas (more light ends) some are better for lube oil. Different crude’s have different properties that make them better suited for a specific product. Each refinery will order what crude they need and how much they want and set up a delivery date. They do not share with other oil companies even at this level.
Now lets go to the West Coast. This is where I spent most of my time. I did spend a little time at the refineries in Houston Texas and New Orleans but most of my time was on the West coast.
On the West coast there are two major refinery areas. (Anacortes, Washington and Martinez, California.)
In the Portland, OR. area, where I worked, all of our refined products (gas, diesel, Kerosene etc.) came out of Anacortes and our fuel oil and asphalt products came out of Martinez.
All of our gas, diesel and Kerosene came in by pipeline. This pipeline is owned and operated by the Olympic Pipe line Co. and all the major oil companies on the Oregon coast are connected to it. They would share time "not products".
The pipeline is 18-inch diameter and about 250 miles long so there are several different products from several different companies in the pipeline at any given time. There is a schedule given to each distribution plant so they will know when their product was going to arrive. As the time line got closer the times would be up dated. One hour before your product was to get to you, you would have your valves open and when your product arrived Olympic would open there valve to you and shut the valve going to who ever just got there’s. The guys at Olympic pipeline new exactly when your product was at your door and when it was time to make the switch. The way they would know was: They knew the exact batch size, exact pumping rate, and the pipe volume. They also had remote gravity meters at each switching station. They could see the product arrive because of the change in gravity.
There are several ways to keep the product separated while being pumped this 250miles. They would use high pressure (900psi), a rubber ball in the line and sometimes an interface material (which was a slop gas of some sort. Olympic pipeline would use all three at different parts of the pipeline. The ball and the interface would be retrieved at the different pumping station or pipeline junctions. The interface would be reinjected into the regular gas. Here is one for you Jestal. All the companies would get an equal dose of this interface, so I guess they are all the same gas, to a point.
Each company would get their own gas, diesel or Kerosene. The companies were very picky about this. Each distribution plant was charged for the gas they were sent so it better equal what was received.
In the 20yrs that I worked for this company I can only remember once that there was an interchange of gas. During the gas shortage in the late 70s every tank at every company along the pipeline was full. We were all trying to find a place to put our gas. The pipeline never stops. Some shortage ha.
Now it is in the tank and ready to truck to the stations. Most major oil companies have there own fleet of trucks. These are used to haul gas and diesel to the station flying their colors, Shell trucks-Shell station / Chevron trucks-Chevron station, you get the picture. Some stations are company own, some are leased and some are privately owned but ALL that carried the name were to use that company’s product. If caught other wise there were major penalties, loose your lease, loose your franchise (no more gas). The oil companies have a lot of power. If you are in the petroleum business you do not want to be on there bad side.
Now where the confusion starts. A lot stations flying their own colors, I call them cut-rate stations. They buy there gas where ever they can get the best buy. They will usually bid for ex amount of gallons and when that is used up they are out looking for more gas. You never know where they get their gas or whose gas you are getting or even what all is in it.
This is where the lack of additive package comes into play. The major oil companies will not sell their gas with their additive package through a station that is not carrying their banner. And they will not claim that gas as their own because they have no control over it. I am not going to plug any one company because they all make good gas and all the additive packages are good. But if you want to know that you are getting the same quality of gas each and every time you fill up, then stay with one of the major brands.
I hope this helps some. Some others I know could care less but remember it is TRUE, even though it all comes down the same pipe line it is not all the same gas. It is kept separate.
I hope this all makes some since. Writing a book is not my forte. That is why you don’t see warsw as the author of any major sellers and why I am still working for a living.
You may see many different company ships loading or unloading at the same docks but the product is not all going to or coming from the same place. Chevron ships are pumping to Chevron tanks, Mobil to Mobil etc, etc,etc. These tanks may be miles away and not even visible but they are there.
Each refinery has its own buying group for furnishing crude to the refinery. They shop for price and availability. Crude is not just crude. Some crude’s are better for gas (more light ends) some are better for lube oil. Different crude’s have different properties that make them better suited for a specific product. Each refinery will order what crude they need and how much they want and set up a delivery date. They do not share with other oil companies even at this level.
Now lets go to the West Coast. This is where I spent most of my time. I did spend a little time at the refineries in Houston Texas and New Orleans but most of my time was on the West coast.
On the West coast there are two major refinery areas. (Anacortes, Washington and Martinez, California.)
In the Portland, OR. area, where I worked, all of our refined products (gas, diesel, Kerosene etc.) came out of Anacortes and our fuel oil and asphalt products came out of Martinez.
All of our gas, diesel and Kerosene came in by pipeline. This pipeline is owned and operated by the Olympic Pipe line Co. and all the major oil companies on the Oregon coast are connected to it. They would share time "not products".
The pipeline is 18-inch diameter and about 250 miles long so there are several different products from several different companies in the pipeline at any given time. There is a schedule given to each distribution plant so they will know when their product was going to arrive. As the time line got closer the times would be up dated. One hour before your product was to get to you, you would have your valves open and when your product arrived Olympic would open there valve to you and shut the valve going to who ever just got there’s. The guys at Olympic pipeline new exactly when your product was at your door and when it was time to make the switch. The way they would know was: They knew the exact batch size, exact pumping rate, and the pipe volume. They also had remote gravity meters at each switching station. They could see the product arrive because of the change in gravity.
There are several ways to keep the product separated while being pumped this 250miles. They would use high pressure (900psi), a rubber ball in the line and sometimes an interface material (which was a slop gas of some sort. Olympic pipeline would use all three at different parts of the pipeline. The ball and the interface would be retrieved at the different pumping station or pipeline junctions. The interface would be reinjected into the regular gas. Here is one for you Jestal. All the companies would get an equal dose of this interface, so I guess they are all the same gas, to a point.
Each company would get their own gas, diesel or Kerosene. The companies were very picky about this. Each distribution plant was charged for the gas they were sent so it better equal what was received.
In the 20yrs that I worked for this company I can only remember once that there was an interchange of gas. During the gas shortage in the late 70s every tank at every company along the pipeline was full. We were all trying to find a place to put our gas. The pipeline never stops. Some shortage ha.
Now it is in the tank and ready to truck to the stations. Most major oil companies have there own fleet of trucks. These are used to haul gas and diesel to the station flying their colors, Shell trucks-Shell station / Chevron trucks-Chevron station, you get the picture. Some stations are company own, some are leased and some are privately owned but ALL that carried the name were to use that company’s product. If caught other wise there were major penalties, loose your lease, loose your franchise (no more gas). The oil companies have a lot of power. If you are in the petroleum business you do not want to be on there bad side.
Now where the confusion starts. A lot stations flying their own colors, I call them cut-rate stations. They buy there gas where ever they can get the best buy. They will usually bid for ex amount of gallons and when that is used up they are out looking for more gas. You never know where they get their gas or whose gas you are getting or even what all is in it.
This is where the lack of additive package comes into play. The major oil companies will not sell their gas with their additive package through a station that is not carrying their banner. And they will not claim that gas as their own because they have no control over it. I am not going to plug any one company because they all make good gas and all the additive packages are good. But if you want to know that you are getting the same quality of gas each and every time you fill up, then stay with one of the major brands.
I hope this helps some. Some others I know could care less but remember it is TRUE, even though it all comes down the same pipe line it is not all the same gas. It is kept separate.
I hope this all makes some since. Writing a book is not my forte. That is why you don’t see warsw as the author of any major sellers and why I am still working for a living.
Last edited by a moderator:
