Solar Energy Show

Copyright 2021 - The Energy Show, Barry Cinnamon My wife complained to me last week that it cost $80 to fill up her car (I was oblivious since I drive an EV). But I wasn’t surprised since the price of gas in San Jose is about $5/gallon. Gas prices are definitely higher than they used to be, but the reality is that prices have been rock stable on an inflation-adjusted basis for over 30 years. In 1978, gas prices were $2.44/gallon compared to $2.24 in 2020. Over the same time period the average gas mileage of a car has gone up from 15 mpg in 1978 to 25 mpg in 2020. Adjusting for inflation and gas mileage, it cost $0.16/mile to drive in 1978 and $0.09/mile in 2020. Even at the U.S. average price of $3.42/gallon, it is still cheaper to drive a car in 2020 than it was in 1978. Nevertheless, gas station signs advertising $5/gallon gas are jolting. And get this: in May, June and July of 2021 U.S. gas refineries exported record amounts of gasoline! Drilling for more oil in the U.S., releasing petroleum from the St