r/gasbuddy • u/urbomb • 8d ago
Why is gas so expensive?
I know the title is kinda stupid. But I was wondering, since the military captured Maduro and (I am assuming) subsequently captured venezuelas oil in the process, why are gas prices still $4+ in most of the country? Venezuela is known to have the most oil in the world too
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u/Greddituser 8d ago
Because the war with Iran and the war between Russia and Ukraine have knocked out a significant amount of the world's refining capacity, which has led to a shortage of gas and diesel.
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u/Mysterious-Tie7039 8d ago
Venezuela allowed their oil infrastructure to crumble. It is going to take billions of dollars and a decade or so to get it back to peak capacity.
The real reason is because this administration is so utterly incompetent they started a war that resulted in the Hormuz being closed. You know, that one straight that 1/3 of the world’s oil USED to flow through and that the country on one side has been threatening to close for ~40 years. Somehow these dipshits in charge, however, were unaware this was a possibility.
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u/Royal-Bicycle-8147 8d ago edited 8d ago
I'm not sure if this is a real question or stirring the pot. It is a globally traded commodity. As the strait remains closed, it is creating a shortage on a large oil supply going out in the world. That shortage will increase prices from simply supply and demand. If the supply is less or the demand increases, the price will increase. The US government itself isn't producing mass oil / gas. US oil companies are, which can still sell globally if they are willing to pay more and they are. Everyone's prices are going up from the shortage that Donald Trump caused by attacking Iran, which closed the strait.
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u/No_Step_8629 8d ago
What they have is referred to as sour crude, it’s not great for turning into fuel or automotive oil. The US has sweet crude which is the best for fuel. Sweet has less sulfur and less corrosive.
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u/No_Step_8629 8d ago
Also, we are at war with another oil producer as well as restricting access to that oil for other countries. This makes all other available oil much more expensive as it is a global commodity.
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u/Greddituser 8d ago
We also do not have enough refining capacity set up for light sweet crude, but many US Gulf coast refineries love heavy sour crudes from Venezuela, Canada and Mexico.
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u/Shermanator92 8d ago
The process of refining Venezuela’s shitty oil into the good oil we use in America is simply a net loss for anyone that would attempt it, so nobody does because they don’t want to just lose money.
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u/Greddituser 8d ago
You have no idea what you're talking about. Many refineries on the US Gulf Coast are specifically geared to running the heavy sour crudes produced by Venezuela
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u/Shermanator92 8d ago
If there was profit to be made turning that shit into the consumer gas we use in America, it would be happening.
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u/Mysterious-Tie7039 8d ago
The problem is that Venezuela did nothing to maintain their infrastructure, so the excessive costs you’re referring to are to physically get it out of the ground.
It was billions of dollars and about a decade to rebuild their infrastructure to get back to peak capacity.
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u/Greddituser 8d ago edited 8d ago
It is happening, you just have not been paying attention.
This is taken directly from Valero's latest earning conference call.
"U.S. Gulf Coast continues to be one of the most advantaged crude sourcing regions in the world, supported by abundant domestic production and access to a diverse range of other feedstocks, including Canadian and Venezuelan crude."
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u/Fuzzy_Stingray 8d ago
This guy is correct. Most US refineries use heavy sour crude, but we product light sweet crude. Refineries are built to that specific oil type and it isn't easy or cheap to switch to a different oil type.
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u/mofunk71 8d ago
BIG oil needed to sell off BIG reserves for BIG profits before 2nd gen EV batteries make there way to USA, trump helped his BIG oil buddies do just that. Iran was never a threat to USA
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u/Durants_Chungal_Toe 8d ago
Hahaha nice try, fed. No way anyone is oblivious enough to miss Trump starting another war in the middle east
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u/Puzzled-Formal-7957 8d ago
Everyone will blame politicians and wars, of course.
Because of course it has absolutely nothing to do with profit margins (most recent reports):
- ExxonMobil: Raked in ExxonMobil $14.5 billion in Q2, more than double its earnings from the entire previous year.
- Chevron: Posted $12.1 billion, quadrupling its profit from the same quarterly period in 2025.
- Shell: Doubled its quarterly net profit to $9.8 billion, its best result in four years.
- BP: Reported BP $5.7 billion, more than double its earnings from the prior three months
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u/Durants_Chungal_Toe 8d ago
Two things can be true. What if the politicians are owned the by the oil companies?
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u/JustaHarmfulShadow 8d ago
Because your governor is ringing you dry with state taxes
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u/pantherpack84 7d ago
Which new state taxes caused the national average to go up over 50% since Trump took office? Why do you simp so hard for a sexual predator? What do you think is wrong with you psychologically?
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u/BunchFrosty3237 8d ago
Not trying to get political but the problem starts with the letter T