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IHS Market Warns Of “Armageddon” For US Propane Market
IHS Market Warns Of “Armageddon” For US Propane Market
The expanding energy crisis is causing propane to rocket higher (read: here) as supplies dwindle to below seasonal levels as research firm IHS Markit Ltd. warns of “armageddon” during the Northern Hemisphere winter.
IHS analyst Edgar Ang told attendees during a virtual presentation on Tuesday that US propane inventories are at a record low and will be extremely tight as cold weather is ahead. Mean temperatures in the Lower US 48 are expected to dip into the 60-55F range through the end of this month.
Heating degree days are set to soar by month end, suggesting the heating season has already begun.
Ang said 1Q22 prices are already above later-dated supplies that “it may indicate players are preparing for propane-market armageddon.” He warned some areas of the country might be prone to shortages this winter.
Propane prices, which are used for heating resident and commercial building structures and also used for industrial production of plastics, have jumped to the highest in a decade due to increasing overseas demand and tight production. The surge comes as a global energy crunch threatens to derail the global economy.
In a separate report, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) expects households that use propane and heating oil this year will spend much more than last. This could strip out some of their spendings in other areas of the economy, such as eating out.
Soaring energy prices, plus food, shelter, and other costs, will continue to pressure the Biden administration to solve persistent inflation that eats away at real wages.
Making matters worse IHS expects a cooler winter that could boost energy demand and continue to place a bid under propane prices, analyst Veeral Mehta said.
It’s only now that the Biden administration wishes there was global warming.
Colorado Declares A Disaster Emergency Over A Lack Of Propane
Colorado Declares A Disaster Emergency Over A Lack Of Propane
An emergency declaration was made in Colorado on Christmas Eve. The state was suffering from a lack of propane. A series of problems led to the emergency declaration, but even minimal prepping could have helped those who were among the allegedly affected.
The propane supplies are now on the rise after the shortage prompted the state’s governor, John Hickenlooper to declare a disaster emergency over the Christmas holiday. Many are crediting the governor for his quick action (signing a piece of paper declaring an emergency is allegedly “helping”) to avert a crisis. While the shortage could have left thousands without heat in Colorado during winter, it seems like if you live in a colder climate, you’d have a backup source of heat anyway. The governor’s “action” was likely nothing more than simple fear mongering brainwashing the public to believe they cannot survive without the government on their own.
There have even been some reports claiming there never was a shortage, adding even more evidence that the disaster declaration is nothing more than a confusing bit of fear mongering. Officials say the shortage stems from in-state production issues, which have forced propane suppliers to turn to out-of-state resources. But many in the industry don’t know where these so-called officials have gotten their information. As part of his declaration, Hickenlooper relaxed his own restrictions on how many hours drivers can work, allowing more propane to be delivered. But this would have all been useless propaganda and immediately labeled as nothing more than fear mongering had those affected by the disaster declaration been adequately prepared and not subjugated by the fear of a shortage that may never have existed, to begin with.
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Preparedness Tip: Cooking Without Power, Part 1
Preparedness Tip: Cooking Without Power, Part 1
Thanks to a reliable power grid Americans aren’t used to the “lights going out” often, but when they do many are surprised to also lose their cooking means—stovetop elements, ovens, microwaves, toasters, and coffeemakers. Everything Americans use on a daily basis for food preparation needs a plug. Even gas stoves rely on power to light the burners (a few gas ranges have battery-powered igniters). In the coming hard times power will be down for at least several months and possibly several years depending on your area.
Worse, the best retreat sites are in rural areas which won’t merit priority for restoring power. Even natural gas, which relies on electric power to operate its pipelines and distribution, will fail—unless your service is one of the few that use natural gas generators to keep pumps going.
A 1000 gallon propane tank is the easiest way to store a lot of cooking fuel: it is cheap, lasts indefinitely and is easy to put in and have filled. Propane is cheapest in the summer so get enough propane on-site that you can go a whole year without having to dip into your reserves—preferably several hundred gallons.
If you need to get another tank as backup now is a good time—propane prices have been so cheap recently, you can install another tank for 1/3 the cost. Connect both tanks together with an isolation valve between them so a leak in one doesn’t empty both tanks.
Even if you have natural gas, it is worth getting propane as a backup. You can buy replacement jet nozzles for all your natural gas appliances like the stove, oven, dryer and water heater and convert to run on propane. Many modern gas appliances already also have an “LP” (liquid propane) attachment point and have two sizes of jets inside, so switching over is easy.
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