Why are fuel dock prices so high?

[Latitude9.5]

This confuses me, first off there's 18 cents per gallon in taxes you don't pay that you do pay on auto diesel. Also, back when diesel shot up to be worth more then pump diesel they said it was due to the fact that the low sulfer diesel required by the epa is more expensive to make, is the marine diesel low sulfer? If not it should be even less.

Local fuel docks here want $4.50 a gallon, price at the auto station is $4.29, luckily I found a place that will deliver to the dock for $4.20 a gallon, which at 175 gallons that's a huge savings.

The only justification I have ever heard is the extra expenses associated with having a fuel dock, spill control etc.... Does that add up to $0.48 per gallon? Anyhow, I guess just consider this a rant and ignore it as it's probably been discussed in the past.

[scallywag]

Latitude9.5,
I think you answered the question. Fuel tanks have to be replaced, hoses have to be run down the dock to the pumps, an attendant needs to be paid, and the cost of a fuel spill cleanup is outrageous. When I was up north it was cheaper to by diesel at the gas station than have a fuel oil company deliver it to my house. You figure!
I just grin and pay it. I am sure the new fuel oil cost will be reflected in new sails.
John

[MarkJ]

You didn't do economics at school.
How many litres does you local marina pump per day compared to a regural sirvice station on the highway?


Also marinas are on water front land and the cost of realestate would be very high.


But I do also agree that many seem to spike it up for a captive audience.


Mark

[Latitude9.5]

Yea I guess, just seems hard to believe it would be such a chunk more for a dock based station over a land based station, I mean they still have tanks to replace, still have the attendant, just not the clean up risk.

The guy who is delivering my fuel said it was $4 two weeks ago, definitely should have called him sooner!

[Alan Wheeler]

I don't quite get it. You are quibling over 30cents a Gallon???

[David M]

I just paid $4.86/gallon for Diesel in Sausalito, CA

It makes perfect sense why fuel from a boat dock is higher. But yeah, I also think they are not too concerned about turning way their captive audience. The next closest fuel dock for me is in Richmond, CA...about an hour and a half away from the Sausalito fuel dock.

[Latitude9.5]

Seemed like something worth discussing, but apparently is not

[GMac]

Originally Posted by Alan Wheeler

I don't quite get it. You are quibling over 30cents a Gallon???

That's a huge number really. On my boat that means another $1.20 every 3 months
Oh I do love yachts

Having been involved with fuel to boats I can tell you the extra cost involved in the extra measures and equipment the docks have to do and use is bloody huge. Not only all the spill prevention but special tanks i.e not rustable steel, lots of non-return valves and things like that. I can't see why the US would be that much different than here with regard to that. Also floating gas stations wouldn't have the ability to shaft you on all the extra 'grab' items the car only ones do.

Not too sure MarkJ is quite right. Not many cars pull into a gas station and load aboard 1000 gallons at a go. That's 67 average car gas tanks per one biggish boat. Its far from uncommon to see numbers like that and even larger. One Maritimo 60 fill up is the same as 122 avergae cars.

[Alan Wheeler]

We are for ever having spills by the commercial guys in our Marina. It's a disgrace. Just this afternoon somebody spilled a heap. And I am not just talking a dribble. Then entire Marina was covered and it reeked of fuel. Yet us mere peasants aren't allowed to fill from cans in case will spill fuel. I fill from cans because the dock price is often 20c/ltr higher than the station price. I just try not to dribble.

[GMac]

Bitch at the local regional authority. They employ 1000's of people who do nothing and I'm sure they'll get a study team together to investigate whether there needs to be a committee set-up to consider whether they need to appoint a Team to oversea some consultants who will charge moonbeams and come up with a 250 page report that will indeed say 'Yes, someone is spilling fuel and something needs to be done about it'.

[Steve Pope]

Grant all the commercial tanks replacing the old leaky steel ones (Land based) are now and have been for several years made of fibreglass or some such non rusting / deteriorating material.
In Toot the dock price is more than from the petrol station, I think it is a premium that the marina charges over the normal pump prices.
As I'm not using a lot more than you I use a 20 litre filled from the local garage.

[GMac]

I don't think the marina charges for the gas, maybe some ground rent.

It's just a case of bigarse multinationals screwing a captive audience I'd say. You and I can wonder down with a 20lt container but it's damn hard when you suck 400lts an hour and you can't carry a 40t 60fter up the road What other options do you have? getting screwed is about it.

I know Kawau charges a lot more but they do have to cover the $3000 transport per fill up and they don't get any special deals from the fuel companies, only a few cents a lt less than anyone in a car on the mainland pays. On and the Squaddy want their pound of flesh as well.

[Alan Wheeler]

Depends on the marina as well. Some fuel points are Marina owned and some are fuel company owned. Ours are fuel company.

[Alan Wheeler]

Did you guys see that big tanker on TV news tonight. 100 million ltrs of petrol from some country. It was on the water for 2 months. Apparently it is really hard to get the fuel to meet NZ Gov spec. Now that was interesting I though. So how come fuel goes up instantly in relation to the price per barrel of oil and that boat was on the water for two months. I smell a fish and it's been sitting in the sun awhile by the smell.

[cooper]

we are paying $1.67 and rising PER LITRE > Its simple the price is set by the people who sell it. (at the wholesale level) They chose an INTERNATIONAL bench mark. That is what they could get for it if they sold it at that price in that market.
There is no competition for oil anymore only DEMAND based prices. The USA price will hit 200 a barrel in the very near future.

Make the most of the prices now.
The only other factors are transport costs (not a lot unless you are at a very isolated place) and government taxes (can be substantial).The only way you can get it temporarily cheaper is to pay to hedge the price (sort of like buying large quantities in advance) Most of the major airlines for example do this because they know that they are going to need a few zillion liters in the coming 12 months.
Otherwise you pay the NOW price for what may have been produced 12 months ago. (just because you mined the gold 12 months ago and had it sitting in your safe dosnt mean you are going to sell it at the price that was being payed when you dug it up).

practice those sailing skills and try and work out what you can do with very cheap motor cruisers !!