Originally Posted by
sailingfun
Of course in 2016 the profit might also be zero. Historically that's probably a far more likely number then 10 billion. I would also be willing to bet oil is in the 80 to 100 dollar range then. We are going to get killed by our hedges next year. american is projected to pay 30 cents a gallon less then us in 15. Combined with the billion dollars invested in the refinery between purchase, upgrades and quarterly losses fuel has not been a bright spot despite managements attempts to justify the purchase.
Isn't the refinery "crude neutral" though?
IOW it doesn't matter what crude is or what we gain or lose on hedges as that is separate from the refinery. Its purpose was to reduce the crack spread/refining costs, and nothing crude does effects that. To that end, isn't it still a success?
If lower oil prices result in lower fuel prices, won't that increase demand for fuel? Won't increased fuel demand result in more fuel needing to be refined? So flooding the market with cheap gas means you have to refine more gas. We now own and control that part of the bottleneck, and control it at a huge discount in our favor.
It was never designed to be an "oil hedge" or to "make a profit" it was done to lower risk and insure a reliable cheap supply. Hasn't it done that wonderfully?