California State Assemblyman Stan Ellis and Mike Ariza stop by the Energy News Beat and the Energy Impacts Podcast with Stu Turley and David Blackmon to discuss the critical nature of the energy crisis facing California, which is about to unfold. Assemblyman Ellis, Mike, and Professor Mische have been working to help get the Federal Government involved to help out California consumers from this potential diesel, gasoline, and jet fuel crash.

Hat tip to David for carrying the podcast, as I had an internet problem, and he did fantastic. California may have a week or so of gasoline in storage, but it can’t get a reliable number from the state government.

We need more members of the Federal and State legislatures like Assemblyman Stan Ellis, who worked for a living and knows how to handle business issues.

1. California’s Fuel Supply Crisis
The episode centers on an impending fuel shortage in California caused by multiple factors:

Refineries shutting down (Valero, Rodeo, Marathon, Phillips)
Tanker shipments from Asia halted since mid-March
Imports now account for 40%+ of California’s fuel supply
Only 3-7 days of fuel storage remaining (vs. Governor Newsom’s claim of 30 days)
Tankers from the Gulf take 25-45 days to reach California due to Panama Canal backups

2. Political Dysfunction in California
Assemblyman Stan Ellis criticizes:
Inefficient time management in the state assembly (spending $40,000/hour on ceremonial resolutions)
Partisan gridlock and ideological rigidity among Democratic leadership
Lack of accountability and poor legislative prioritization
The disconnect between politicians and real-world business operations

3. California’s Energy Policy Problems
Key issues highlighted:
CARB regulations: Reformulated fuel requirements (Carbob) limit fuel sources
Cap and Trade: Billions diverted to high-speed rail instead of infrastructure or energy solutions
Environmental lawsuits: Constant litigation blocking oil and gas development
Renewable diesel conversion: Rodeo and Marathon refineries converted away from gasoline/jet fuel production, removing 350,000 barrels/day of capacity

4. Short-term and Long-term Solutions
Proposed remedies include:
Immediate: Import non-Carbob gasoline from the Gulf; suspend Jones Act restrictions
Medium-term: Executive orders to federalize oil and gas as a national security issue
Long-term: Increase domestic drilling, restore refinery profitability, eliminate Cap and Trade, invest in alternative energy (fusion, nuclear, hydrogen)

5. Geopolitical and Supply Chain Issues
U.S. importing 30% of crude oil from the Middle East
Indirect support of Russia through purchases of Indian fuel (which sources from Russia)
Iran’s strait closure affecting global oil production
Other countries (Nevada, Arizona) dependent on California’s fuel supply

6. Economic and National Security Implications
Oil and gas represent 8% of California’s GDP; without it, the other 92% is unsustainable
Military bases (42 in California) dependent on fuel supply
Commercial aviation and trucking (grocery delivery) at risk
Potential for widespread economic disruption if crisis occurs

The overall tone is urgent and critical of California’s environmental policies. Things have to change quickly to avoid the crisis.

When Californians want to know why their gasoline costs are so high, they just need to look at State Taxes.

And Zerohedge wrote about this today.

$6 Gas in California Signals New Phase of the Global Energy Crunch

The statewide average for 87-octane gasoline in California has topped $6 a gallon as the Iran-war-driven global energy crunch ripples across the West Coast, the hardest-hit U.S. region. Meanwhile, the national average remains above the politically sensitive $4-a-gallon threshold, hovering around $4.30, according to AAA data as of Thursday morning. It’s clear that bad ‘green’ energy policies by unhinged, left-wing politicians in the Golden State have left the state’s energy complex in a total mess, with no buffers.

“That’s the highest since October 2023. No other state has ever surpassed the $6-a-gallon mark. At the outset of the war, the price in the Golden State was $4.64 a gallon,” Bloomberg wrote in a note earlier.

We will be tracking the problems and the potential solutions, it is a little wild with so much going on around the world.

Tomorrow is the Energy News Beat Standup, and I am working on the interview with David Turver and Levelized Cost of Energy, and we have Doomberg coming back on in a week.

Check out the Energy Impacts at https://blackmon.substack.com/

 

A shout-out to Steve Reese and the Reese Energy Consulting group for sponsoring the Podcast https://reeseenergyconsulting.com/.

 

Data2 if you have any business systems, can you trust A? Well, they have the patent on validation. . https://data2.zoholandingpage.com/energy

 

And we have WellDatabase rolling in as a new sponsor. https://welldatabase.com/