Gasoline prices are increasing almost daily, pinching the wallets and pocketbooks of nearly all Americans with cars. However, as bad as that news is, diesel prices are surging even more across the country. Today’s truckstop retail diesel prices hit a new record of $5.32/gallon. Since February 1st, national truckstop diesel prices have increased by $1.57/gallon. For an owner-operator whose truck gets 6.5 miles per gallon, this equates to a cost increase of $0.24 per mile.
Diesel’s importance to our economy
To many Americans (including politicians), diesel prices are so removed from their version of reality that they often dismiss the importance of diesel to the U.S. and global economies. However, diesel is the fuel that drives the economy and leaves major industries vulnerable to cost shocks.
Without diesel fuel, the U.S. economy would collapse in a matter of days. Our supply chains would completely shrivel, almost overnight.
Trucks use it to haul our goods across the country. Of all Class 8 trucks (the big ones), 97% use diesel. No, Elon Musk is not going to save us here. When Tesla announced the Semi in 2017, Musk projected that over 100,000 would be produced by 2022. Today there are less than 20, mostly prototypes.
Trains also depend on diesel to transport products across the country. Almost every train in the country depends on diesel for energy.
Even a large portion of our electricity is indirectly powered by diesel. Over one-fifth (22%) of our electricity in the United States comes from coal. Diesel-powered trains transport coal to power plants across the nation.
Diesel is also critical to our imports and exports, because 80% of the ships that transport products via the ocean are powered by diesel.
A world without diesel would mean that our grocery stores and restaurants would run out of food, retail store shelves would be empty, and hospitals would run out of medical supplies. But that is just scratching the surface.
Diesel’s importance to agriculture
Farmers use diesel to power most of their machinery. According to the Diesel Technology Forum, diesel is critical to the farming industry:
One reason why U.S. agriculture is among the most productive and economically valuable in the world; producing more yield in less time with fewer inputs, is thanks to the advancements in the machines and equipment that do the planting, harvesting and tending to the land. Today, diesel engines power the majority of agricultural equipment in the U.S. and around the world necessary to plant, cultivate and harvest crops and transport them to markets or for processing and then delivered ultimately to the consumer.
Diesel engines power more than two-thirds of all farm equipment, transport 90% of its product and pump one-fifth of its water in the United States. Ninety-six percent of the large trucks that move agricultural commodities to railheads and warehouses are powered by a diesel engine. One hundred percent of the freight locomotives, marine river grain barges and ocean-going vessels that deliver these products to markets at home and abroad are powered by diesel.
In the agricultural sector, there is no cost-effective substitute for diesel engines with the same combination of energy efficiency, power and performance, durability and reliability. Diesel dominates the entire “farm supply chain” – planting the product, tending the crop (watering, fertilizers, and pesticides), harvesting the product and even bringing the product to market by truck, rail or ship. Farm tractors, combines, irrigation pumps and other equipment are the workhorses in an industry vital to our national economy and quality of life.
Nearly every fishing vessel around the world uses diesel for power. Without diesel, our fishing food supply chain would collapse.
(Photo: Customs and Border Protection)
Diesel’s importance to the industrial sector
Diesel also powers the construction industry. From the Diesel Technology Forum:
Roughly 850,000 diesel-powered vehicles nationwide are in use bringing supplies, materials and workers to and from U.S. construction sites. Earthmovers, bulldozers, bucket loaders, backhoes, cranes, pavers, excavators and motor graders are all essential to building and expanding our economic infrastructure. For most of these machines, there is simply no substitute for diesel power. No viable alternative has yet emerged for equipment that exceeds 500 horsepower; some construction engines produce several thousand horsepower.
Since diesel powers the industrial economy, the recent surges in prices will put additional inflationary pressures on the U.S. economy – in the sectors that have already experienced unprecedented inflation – transportation, agriculture, and construction.
But this may be less damaging than demand destruction that may come along with price surges, especially in transportation and construction.
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“A world without diesel would mean that our grocery stores and restaurants would run out of food, retail store shelves would be empty, and hospitals would run out of medical supplies. ”
That is exactly what they are shooting for. Diesel prices are still rising and projected to hit $7/gallon in some parts of the country soon.
Over $5 here in CO now.
Over $6.00 in Peoples Republic of Massachusetts
6.48 in PA
What happened the first week of March in the chart?
Totally off point and I’ll get downvotes for it, but: I hate manipulative graphs.
I actually especially hate them when they’re unnecesary.
I presume the graph of diesel prices is the one you’re talking about. By manipulative I guess you mean since the bottom of the graph is not -0-, it exaggerates the magnitude of the increase, right? Everyone does it, sometimes for dramatic impact like this one; sometimes just to save space.
Here’s one to graph. I just used two bags of 13-13-13 fertilizer on my yard. Bought them last summer for $20 per 40lb bag and just had a chance to finally use them. I went to the nursery to buy something else and looked at the price of the same fertilizer today. $45 a bag. Graph that.
I’m not sure how “fresh” the info, searching Al Gore’s Internet, Home Depot advertises a 32 lb bag of Milorganite, “Eco Friendly”, human poop fertilizer for $16.98. I’ve used it and it did not stink the place up anymore so than commercial type fertilizers. I don’t think grass cares. May or may not be the “answer. And it may or may not be true that human poop out of Milwaukee is not impacted as much by the Russian/Ukraine skirmishes on the fertilizer side of things. I paid $14 for 50lb bags of the processed poop two years ago.
My “lawn” is basically a pasture , not one located in Southlake, Texas amongst the $3mil adobes. What I like about the “fertilizer” is it does not require watering regardless how hot/dry and matters not when applied. “Sprinkler” systems are a pipe dream at our place.
Heavy metals in it, do not use on vegetables.
‘One of the most hazardous of the toxic metals found in fertilizers like Milorganite is lead. It’s poisonous in all forms and its health effects are cumulative and potentially severe. Children and their developing brains and nervous systems are especially vulnerable to the metal’s warping punch.’
https://www.engineering.iastate.edu/~jea/w3-class/456/article/milorganite.html#:~:text=One%20of%20the%20most%20hazardous,to%20the%20metal's%20warping%20punch.
Just on the grass. And unfortunately , I suppose, seems to be any number of fertilizers that contain lead and other goodies.
https://www.health.state.mn.us/communities/environment/risk/studies/metals.html
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/BF00747683
https://aroundtheyard.com/forums2/viewtopic.php?t=2537
Nothing wrong with Milorganite except using it in a food producing area. Don’t know if you remember big mike and its vegetable garden at the White House, but some soil scientist was raked over the coals because he warned against using Milorganite, and of course nothing the obamas did could be wrong. They knew everything.
Over the years have used alot of fertilizer of different types for lawns, nursery stock, and what have you, and have noticed all kinds of just debris in the bags from things, even parts of machines. It is like everything else I guess.
I do use this for vegetables. It is good stuff and fairly inexpensive. Just kind of messy putting out, definitely have to use old clothes because it is bound to get on you, and the neighbors will love the smell.
https://www.neptunesharvest.com/
A five gallon bucket is about $160.00 delivered in about three days. Same price for the last ten years. The nutrient contents are low but the plants must take it right up because one application gives beautiful results.
I researched Milorganite and compared the bad stuff the company claims to those deemed EPA approved for what that is worth. On paper it is ok. It’s an alternative to commercial fertilizers that I know make the grass green yet are harmful to microbes in the soil. First time I ordered from a local feed store the lady owner did so but said there is no way she is using human poop (not exactly here word) for fertilizer on anything.
I work at building compost for the garden. Several years has paid off. While in the compost process I’ll apply a bit of organic fertilizer like Jobe’s that supposedly helps with the composting process.
Yes, I did mean that. But I also said I don’t like it when it’s unnecessary.
A 40% increase in 3 months in something as fundamental to the economy as diesel should just stand on its own. Why the need to make it graphically look like a 1000% increase?
It’s just a practice of authors deceiving to get dolts who can’t read graphs to agree with them (“Ooh, look how steep that increase is! It went from, like, nothing to a real lot! Derrp!”).
Just a pet peeve of mine. YMMV.
Graphaphobic fukface…
lol. Thanks.
Remember when Pres. Dubya and the GOP Congress tacked on another buck to the cost of diesel? Burn it all down.
To many Americans (including politicians), diesel prices are so removed from their version of reality that they often dismiss the importance of diesel to the U.S. and global economies. However, diesel is the fuel that drives the economy and leaves major industries vulnerable to cost shocks.
Naturally any fuel costs are passed on to the consumer IF the products can be delivered at all. Might try convincing the warmongering folks that call themselves politicians to cease the manifest destiny theory conquering the world at large in the name of democracy and defending freedom and feeding the beast called MIC I’ll add. Vote harder? Nah
Warren Buffet would certainly like these stats.
Different subject yet one people may or may not think about. I forget the number of cars pulled by a locomotive used in an example of a stopping train, like at a road/train crossing. 80 cars seems the number and traveling at 50 or 60 MPH it takes that locomotive approximately one mile to come to a complete stop. Those whose loved ones are killed trying to “beat” a train at a crossing ask,”why did the train not stop?” Uh…
I’m waiting for the reconstituted potus edict of 55 mph saves gas and lives.
Yeah, off topic, what an idiot, him and all the rest, potus, $33bil more to Ukraine. I don’t follow the lunacy as much now. Surely the 33 won’t fly.
Most of that is for Zelensky’s cocaine. A few of the weapons will eventually shoot down an American commercial airliner. And of course a chunk of that money is for kickbacks to American politicians – through their sons, with their famed expertise as oil company directors.
There was a video or article recently giving hints to that. I mentally noted it, but didn’t save the link. I’ll see if I can find it.
I helped the BNSF get the Hauser ID Fueling Facility get up and running.
I was involved in Maintenance of the place for about one and a half years.
The Facility fuels around 12 to 20 trains per day.
There are between 4 and 6 engines per train and each engine has about a 3000 gallon capacity with about 2000 gallons dispensed with each fill up.
Every couple weeks, 10 to 12, 33,000 to 35,000 gallon tank cars of diesel are unloaded to fuel the engines.
This gives a train enough fuel to make a round trip to and from the West Coast.
There is another such major facility at Haver MT with numerous smaller fueling facilities scattered around the System.
I do not know of the other fueling facilities further east.
I do not know about the fueling facilities for the other Major Railroads.
My numbers may be a little off as I have not worked there for almost 20 years and I am in my 6th year of retirement.
Over the road trucks are not the only significant users of diesel fuel.
As I was told, the Navy is the biggest consumer of diesel fuel and the Railroads come in second.
I was told that the Diesel Fuel for Hauser came from Canada.
The heavier oils from refining go into Bunker fuel for ships and is very polluting and they switch to cleaner fuels when they reach the Coast.
Less than 25 of the Super Sized Ships put out more pollution than all American cars.
Very little of a gallon of Crude goes to waste.
Oil is the Life blood of the World Economy, and the World Population started its exponential growth with the wide spread use of Oil Distillates.
Much of the Worlds population will die with a significant reduction of Oil.
Everything I have seen in the last 2 years appears to be pointing to a Government Engineered reduction of the Population.
The Corporations also appear to be willingly facilitating the depopulation effort even to the point of risking their “Profits” and their very Companies existence.
The Governments of the World Own the Corporations.
The Corporations do not Own the Governments.
Look into CAFRs.
One of the more informative comments I’ve ever seen. Thank you.
I remember Mike Ruppert’s book “Crossing the Rubicon” and him stating that oil carries more energy in a drop than any other energy. I served on two diesel electric ships in the navy and we had a million gallons of fuel per ship. Those FM 38ND8 1/8 engines used a lot.
Are Comprehensive Annual Financial Reports Useless?
$5.69 outside Dallas today. Customers pissed but not surprised my prices are going up.
Let’s go, Brandon!
They blamed the Arabs and oil prices for inflation in the 70’s. Same today only the Russians are the villians. The real problem is the FED and politicians creating currency out of thin air. 30 trillion dollars worth. The politicians are just trying to point the finger at anyone except themselves.
Rising prices are not inflation. They are the result of the government inflating.
Why? Why do we need so many trucks? Because we went from local production to centralised production. It was a mistake.
Why? Why do we need so many ships burning so much fuel? Because we thought it would be a good idea to import so much shit.
The globalization and centralization process has left us in a mess worldwide. Bad decisions make for bad results. No one forced people to buy crap from China. No one forced people to buy f products produced by mega corps located outside their communities. No one forced anyone to buy from Walmart and so destroy local shops. This all happened with willing participation of the people. Warnings were made, but few listened.
US and Australian citizenry has made bad decisions for decades, and the results will be bad.
And earlier than wally world was K-Mart. Interesting story about K-mart similar to Enron. I do recall the blue light specials.
I never cared much for K-Mart. We still had some Gibson’s Discount Centers around. They went by the wayside but had nice sporting goods section with lots of guns and ammo and fishing gear.