Frontieras Positioned to Address Emerging Diesel Dilemma
Written by Matthew McKean, CEO and Co-Founder of Frontieras
Today’s economy is very different than it was when we entered COVID19 protocols.
Many across the globe anticipated a general slowdown of purchasing goods and services during COVID. What we saw during this unprecedented time was an accelerated adoption of ecommerce, a nation held up with government subsidies and a shrinking workforce. Now, as the U.S. and the rest of the globe emerge out of lockdown, we are seeing the impact of labor shortages, rising inflation and the shortcomings of bad government policies that have hindered production of key energy resources.
Today, the impact of rising costs is felt by all of us. At the core of this inflation pattern is the lack of abundant, available, and affordable fuel. In relation to the economy, I am speaking specifically about diesel fuel. Diesel is a core component of our global economy and its key markets, including our nation’s agriculture, industrial, and transportation networks.
According to Department of Energy figures, the price per gallon of diesel has reached record highs of $5.62 per gallon. On the East Coast, it is even higher at $5.90, up 63% from the beginning of this year. The ongoing increase of diesel prices since the beginning of the year has placed a massive strain on America’s $800 billion trucking industry.
Fuel shortages and cost increases are nothing new in our history of energy, however that doesn’t change the fact that it is painful to our economy. It is being compounded by the shortages in inventory caused by policies that have shut down many of the plants necessary to produce diesel, as well as the reliance of poorly located fuel sources. With the East Coast in focus, below are several key facts to consider with today’s diesel dilemma:
According to DOE, the East Coast is more than 10 million barrels shy of the 62 million barrels of diesel it typically stores during the month of May.
The East Coast has seven refineries. This number is half of what it was just 15 years ago and reduces the region’s oil processing capacity to just 818,000 barrels per day, down from 1.64 million barrels per day in 2009.
Colonial Pipeline is a main artery for transporting oil between the Gulf of Mexico and the East Coast. On its best day, it requires 18 days for the gas to travel from its source in Houston to New Jersey. If you combine that with the fact that it has been subjected to ransomware attacks, the pipeline is not an efficient, reliable resource.
America’s support for EMEA’s independence from Russia’s oil is diverting crude oil abroad and depleting the national supply.
According to logistics firm FreightWaves’s CEO Craig Fuller in a recent tweet, "3 very large fleets" are preparing for diesel pumps at fuel stations to run dry.
I outline each of these elements to illustrate the role that Frontieras is poised to play within today’s economy, by supporting ancillary markets and helping correct the energy crisis. Frontieras’ first FASForm plant is set to be operational in 2023 and is projecting output of more than 5 million barrels annually of liquid fuel. Because of Frontieras’ unique all-in-one design with zero waste, it is anticipating the operation of multiple plants across the United States and the 5 continents that it holds patents. The benefits produced by the plants and the proximity to key populations will create the necessary availability to energy to provide much needed relief to the current shortcomings.
Frontieras North America, a subsidiary of Frontier Applied Sciences, has spent the last 10 years developing a technology that reimagines the processing of hydrocarbons within a broader energy market. Specifically focused on efficiently processing fossil fuels, Frontieras maximizes the energy output and produced yields of each form including solids, liquids and gas. Frontieras and its Solid Carbon Fractionation technology are poised to redefine the energy market and provide a way for hydrocarbons to be used as a core component of our society’s energy creation. To learn more, visit us at www.frontieras.com