World's Refineries May Not Meet U.S.' Growing Gasoline Appetite

The U.S. is the world's biggest consumer of gasoline.
But where to get that gasoline is a growing problem.
Current high gasoline prices partly stem from little growth in U.S. refining capacity over the past two decades. There are a number of reasons, including tough environmental laws and refineries' historically low investment returns.
To meet growing demand, the U.S. imports about 11% of its gasoline. Those non-U.S. refineries will see the strongest growth over the next two decades.
Will those refiners relieve future U.S. supply constraints? Some, but not a lot. Though U.S. refinery growth will lag gasoline demand growth, overseas refiners will find more than enough demand from their own countries' drivers. Traditional suppliers of non-U.S. gasoline are on the wane while potential new suppliers have yet to come onstream.
'The odds of (overseas gasoline meeting U.S. demand growth) are fairly low,' said Blake Eskew, vice president at oil consulting firm Purvin & Gertz. 'Some products will come to the U.S., but not enough to meet our own demand.'
Not Enough Gas Here, There
Non-U.S. refiners supply about 1 million barrels a day of gasoline and gasoline blending components to the U.S., says the Energy Information Administration. The amount imported varies as the summer driving season kicks in.
U.S. refiners supply the remaining 8.1 million barrels a day of gasoline consumed. Ron Planting, spokesman for the American Petroleum Institute, says refineries are running at almost full capacity -- 96%"