Higher diesel

Now is the time to fill your fuel tanks and get your diesel needs secured for fall. That’s the word from Jason Schwantz, the senior vice president of refined fuels at CHS. He says prices will hike back up come fall, and fuel inventory is still not back up to pre-pandemic levels. He explains why we've been experiencing whiplash in fuel prices from record-lows during COVID to record-highs a few months ago.

 

Schwantz explains how the push from the Biden administration for 'clean energy,' like electric vehicles and biofuels, is playing a role in this. He says while EVs are picking up on the coast, demand is stronger for ethanol and renewable fuels in the Midwest.

 

He says corn and soybean farmers are benefiting from this heightened demand for renewable fuels.The reason we're seeing gas prices go down is that demand started contracting in July. Diesel prices are not going down as quickly.

 

Schwantz says now is the time to fill your fuel tanks and get your diesel needs secured for fall because diesel fuel inventories are really low.

 

Another issue is hurricanes. More than a third of the U.S. refining capacity is in the Gulf, and hurricane season begins in October. Any disasters there can also make a big impact on prices during your critical harvest period.