WA Diesel Shortages Due to BP Supply Contamination

[Amalgam]

Short-term Diesel shortage remains in WA (http://www.watoday.com.au/wa-news/shortterm-diesel-shortage-remains-in-wa-20140602-zrv9h.html)


"At least 52 service stations in Western Australia remain without diesel after a "short-term interruption" to supplies.

FuelWatch said as at 2pm (WST) on Sunday, there were 42 service stations without diesel in metropolitan Perth and 10 in the regions.

But the FuelWatch tally does not include BP outlets and small independents, and there could be Caltex and Coles sites without diesel that FuelWatch has not counted.

The number of known affected fuel retailers has decreased since Saturday when FuelWatch was aware of 101 sites having run out of diesel across the state.

FuelWatch said motorists should phone ahead to check whether a service station had diesel supplies before driving to make a purchase.

BP said on Thursday that the shortage was due to a shipment of imported diesel having slight discolouration during checks to ensure it met Australian standards.

Following further technical inquiries to ensure the diesel was fit to use, BP said supplies could be slower than usual to arrive."





From the above article and the multiple Shell/Coles and Caltex/Woolworths stations that ran dry across Perth, it seems that BP supplies the diesel to all 3 retailers.

My question is what real difference is there between them?? Surely the CN must be similar if not identical.

Is there a forum member with industry knowledge able to shine a light on this??

Thanks

[Diesel_vert]

I preface this post by stating that I do not work for the petroleum industry, so don't consider it authoritative.


From the above article and the multiple Shell/Coles and Caltex/Woolworths stations that ran dry across Perth, it seems that BP supplies the diesel to all 3 retailers.

AFAIK, the majority of crude oil (more than 80%) used for domestic consumption is imported. The rest is supplemented by domestic sources of crude oil - most of which is exported, as Australian light crude attracts a premium price in international markets.

The major refiners (BP, Caltex, Mobil & Shell) have supply, distribution and storage arrangements with one another in each state.

The refineries (BP & Caltex in Qld, Caltex in NSW, Mobil & Shell in Vic, BP in WA) mostly supplies each of their respective states, but their products can also be sent interstate (e.g. SA, NT & Tas) or to regional areas.

You can find out more about the petroleum industry, from the ACCC website (http://www.accc.gov.au/publications/monitoring-of-the-australian-petroleum-industry) and the AIP website (http://www.aip.com.au/) if you want.


My question is what real difference is there between them?? Surely the CN must be similar if not identical.

I have read that fuel additives (wholesale or proprietary), dyes, or other chemicals may be added at the terminal stage (after the refinery stage) by the majors. I'm lead to believe the actual base fuel is very similar, which would make sense, given how the petroleum industry is structured.