kuifje75 said:
After having lived in Germany and paying 35 to 40$ to fill the tank of a compact car, I began to think that the Americans are very ungrateful brats who have their gas so cheap. Every time the prices rise, everyone complains. RME... In Germany right now, it is 8 dollars per gallon. 2 dollars is nothing compared to 8 dollars! Again, it has nothing to do with conservatives or liberals.
Germany imports almost 100% of it's oil. The U.S. imports 55 to 60% of it's oil. We are the third largest oil producing country in the world if you consider the former soviet Union as one country. That in part accounts for lower oil prices here. So it is not like we are 100% dependant on foriegn oil like some nations.
20 largest oil producers Country Production Rank & Production
Early 2002
1. Saudi Arabia 7.7 million barrels/day 3. 7.7 mb/d
2. Former Soviet Union 7.1 million barrels/day 1. 8.6 mb/d
3. USA 5.9 million barrels/day 2. 8.1 mb/d
4. Iran 3.6 million barrels/day 4. 3.7 mb/d
5. China 3.2 million barrels/day 7. 3.3 mb/d
6. Norway 3.0 million barrels/day 6. 3.4 mb/d
7. Mexico 3.0 million barrels/day 5. 3.6 mb/d
8. Venezuela 2.8 million barrels/day 8. 2.8 mb/d
9. United Kingdom 2.7 million barrels/day 10. 2.6 mb/d
10. Iraq 2.5 million barrels/day 11. 2.4 mb/d
11. United Arab Emirates 2.1 million barrels/day 12. 2.2 mb/d
12. Nigeria 2.0 million barrels/day 13. 2.1 mb/d
13. Kuwait 1.9 million barrels/day 14. 1.7 mb/d
14. Canada 1.9 million barrels/day 9. 2.8 mb/d
15. Libya 1.3 million barrels/day 16. 1.4 mb/d
16. Indonesia 1.3 million barrels/day 17. 1.2 mb/d
17. Brazil 1.1 million barrels/day 15. 1.6 mb/d
18. Oman 0.9 million barrels/day 18. 1.0 mb/d
19. Egypt 0.9 million barrels/day 21. 0.75 mb/d
20. Colombia 0.8 million barrels/day 29. 0.62 mb/d
Costs to produce and sell a gallon of gasoline in the US
One barrel of crude oil makes about 19½ gallons of gasoline, 9 gallons of fuel oil, 4 gallons of jet fuel, and 11 gallons of other products, including lubricants, kerosene, asphalt, and petrochemical feedstocks to make plastics. The ultimate cost of a gallon of gas at the service station depends mostly on the price of crude oil, and most of the profit after expenses goes to the owner-producers of the oil, whether they are governments or oil producing companies. The following table shows an approximate breakdown of the costs that go into a gallon of gas in the US. Almost everywhere in the world outside the US, people pay MUCH more for gasoline, largely because of much larger government taxes, which amount to around $3 to $4 per gallon in many European countries. In the categories "Production cost" and "Producer profit" the values show a range from Saudi Arabian production to USA production. Naturally, all the other values may vary some as well; these are general estimates.
Expense Amount
Production cost 15¢ to 60¢
Producer profit 53¢ to 8¢
Refining cost 13¢
Marketing cost 5¢
Transportation cost 15¢
Retailer cost 6¢
Refiner, marketer,
transp. & retailer profit 10¢
US Taxes 19¢
Average state taxes 23¢
TOTAL $1.59
http://www.gravmag.com/oil.html 