Chevron Doubles 2022 Income, Reveals In depth Fuel Value Gouging In The West, Shopper Watchdog Says

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 27, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — Chevron reported earnings for the 12 months of $35.5 billion, greater than doubling final 12 months’s $15.6 billion, with monetary information revealing the corporate additionally doubled its per gallon income off customers on the West Coast, Shopper Watchdog mentioned as we speak.

West Coast refining margins have been a startling 85 cents per gallon for 2022, doubling final 12 months’s margin of 37 cents per gallon. Chevron traditionally posted common income per gallon of 46 cents during the last 20 years and only exceeded 50 cents three times in that period—till now. Chevron’s West Coast refining margins have been the biggest of any of its different areas.

The legislature is contemplating laws, SBx1 2 (Skinner) to determine a windfall income cap on how a lot oil refiners could make in revenue per gallon of gasoline. Shopper Watchdog has prompt penalties kick in after 50 cents per gallon.

“Chevron’s revenue studies are the poster youngster for why we’d like a value gouging penalty on extreme income,” mentioned Jamie Courtroom, President of Shopper Watchdog. “Chevron’s pocketed billions of {dollars} an excessive amount of off Californians’ hard-earned cash and made them select between paying lease and filling up their tank. With 30% of the California market and an 85 cents per gallon revenue margin, Chevron would have paid a multi-billion greenback penalty if the value gouging penalty had been in impact and would have needed to return the cash to customers.”

Fourth quarter income from Chevron’s refining operations alone almost doubled to $1.18 billion over $660 million for the fourth quarter of 2021. For the 12 months, the corporate reported greater than doubling these refining income to $5.4 billion over $2.4 billion final 12 months.

Shopper Watchdog calculates income per gallon by dividing the reported refining margin for the 12 months of $35.80 per barrel by 42, the variety of gallons in a barrel of oil. Refining margins replicate the distinction between what a refinery pays for crude versus what it prices for completed merchandise.
See: https://chevroncorp.gcs-web.com/static-files/346400b0-61a5-46cf-a0b2-7d7dfb3f98ab

Value-gouging was at its peak within the second and third quarters of 2022. Chevron raked in $1.12 per gallon in income within the second quarter on a refining margin of $47.03 per barrel. It collected 95 cents a gallon within the second quarter on a refining margin of $39.99. Within the fourth quarter, the gouging lessened to 70 cents on a refining margin of $29.58—nonetheless an unacceptable degree.

Below a brand new legislation, SB 1322 (Allen), the Oil Refiner Value Disclosure act, Chevron and different California refiners might be required to report month-to-month the price of the crude oil they purchase versus the wholesale value of the gasoline they promote and their income made per gallon. This reporting requirement, designed for transparency in gasoline pricing, will produce information in nearer to actual time and might be reported to the California Vitality Fee beginning in March.

“The value gouging penalty into account by California lawmakers will go hand-in-hand with these reporting necessities and is important to enact,” mentioned Shopper Advocate Liza Tucker. “This can be a solution to get a deal with on the gouging virtually as it’s occurring and apply a penalty every time corporations exceed 50 cents per gallon revenue—a degree that affords them loads of earnings with out affecting the availability of crude oil or gasoline.”

Marathon and Phillips 66 report their year-end earnings subsequent week and PBF Vitality studies in mid-February.

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SOURCE Shopper Watchdog