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Panic buying by motorists in response to a cyber attack on an interstate pipeline has led to a breakdown of supplies at gas stations across the southeastern U.S., prompting the federal government to suspend pollution regulations for maintain energy flow.
The colonial pipeline has been closed since Friday after what the FBI said was a rescue attack by a hacking group called DarkSide. The 5,500-mile network supplies gasoline, diesel, and aircraft fuel from Mexican Gulf refineries to U.S. east coast markets.
Drivers worried about the potential shortage have been filling cars. Nearly 8 percent of Virginia’s stations had run out of gas as of Tuesday morning, according to fuel data provider GasBuddy, while about 6 percent of North Carolina stations and 4 percent of gas stations have run out of gas. Georgia stations had also dried up.
“Motorists, in some cases, are starting to hoard gasoline supplies, causing stations to run out or run out faster than they would have, which will have a bigger impact for the next few days,” Patrick De Haan said. head of GasBuddy oil analysis.
The plumbing company has said it expects most of the system to be up and running by the end of the week. U.S. gasoline futures for delivery in June have remained largely stable since the shutdown began, as banking operators returned to normal.
However, pump prices have begun to rise sharply. National average gas prices hit $ 2.99 on Tuesday morning, according to the AAA, a motorists association, the highest level since November 2014.
According to AAA, the southeastern U.S. states remained among the cheapest gasoline markets, but prices are also rising.
As of April 30, the southeastern United States had 23.8 million barrels of gasoline stored, 9 percent less than the average, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Fuel wholesalers can withdraw these stocks until service is restored to the pipeline, which carries 45% of the fuel consumed on the east coast.
However, there has been “in many cases two or three times normal demand,” as consumers react to the disruption, said Jeff Lenard, vice president of industry strategic initiatives at NACS, a store trade association. of convenience. “People are worried about where their next job will come from, so they’re making sure they get it today.”
To address fuel shortages, the U.S. environmental regulator temporarily waived Tuesday some restrictions on the vapor pressure of gasoline sold in Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia, as well as Washington, DC. Usually, the controls are in place to curb the smog.
“I have determined that there is an‘ extreme and unusual fuel supply circumstance ’that will prevent the distribution of an adequate supply of gasoline to consumers,” said Michael Regan, administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. he wrote in a letter to the three state governors and the mayor of Washington.
The U.S. Department of Transportation before enacted emergency powers raise the limits on the number of hours truckers could work in order to increase road fuel deliveries.
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