PANIC BUY!

[Skub]

I'm looking at this from the positive side...

I don't have any unleaded for my lawnmower, which gets me out of a shit job for the weekend

But the grass will keep growing,then it'll rain and the grass will grow faster. By the time it dries up and you get some fuel,it'll be like the first cut of the year. Rotovator city.

[cheb]

I've found this company very helpful: http://www.petroldirect.com/

[demographic]

I've found this company very helpful: http://www.petroldirect.com/

To be fair, not seen an issues round here but I filled up from half a tank.
A full tank is about a week and a halfs worth at the current distance to the site I'm on but not so long ago I was getting through a tank every four days so that not being allowed to fill up unless I was less than a quarter of a tank could mean I wouldn't have enough even for one single day.

If I was retired I'd likely not have to think too hard about it but I've not seen any carpenters working from home yet so I'm not taking any chances.
Just means I won't have to fill up next week now.

[irie]

So when will this storm in a jerry can be over, my guess is Tuesday/Wednesday, whatdyareckon?

[Skub]

So when will this storm in a jerry can be over, my guess is Tuesday/Wednesday, whatdyareckon?

The Daily Wail will let us know.

[Mussels]

Google maps is showing local petrol stations are quieter than usual this morning, panic buying over.

I spoke too soon, just got back and every petrol station in town is either empty or has small queues in the street. London was ridiculous, every one we saw had a queue of 30+ cars blocking the roads up, I was glad to get out of there.
I'm glad I don't need any fuel yet, I'll go next weekend when it's quiet.

[Kneerly Down]

"Traditionally, Europe uses the summer, when gas prices are lower due to limited heating demand, to fill reserves for the winter. Following the closure of the Rough storage facility – a depleted gas field in the North Sea – in 2017, the UK has no long-term storage.
...

What actual difference would Rough being kept on (i.e. lots of investment to keep it running) made to the current situation?

We don't have a lack of gas; we have a lack of cheap gas.
I can't imagine Centrica, who owned and run Rough would have sold it for materially less than the market price.
Even then, when full, it was, what, 7 days of supply? Can't ser it would have made any real difference to what we're faced with now anyway.

[demographic]

So when will this storm in a jerry can be over, my guess is Tuesday/Wednesday, whatdyareckon?

Dunno, we'll see.
If it's just a media fueled panic a week at most but if its a genuine shortage of drivers expect it to roll on through the different businesses as they each up the rate or suffer because they haven't.


Tell you what, well stick a pin in this conversation and come back to it in a while and decide who is right and who is suffering from delusions of adequacy.

Hell, it might even be both of us thats wrong and some random thats got the measure of it all.
Thelat would be proper funny.

[Count Steer]

"Traditionally, Europe uses the summer, when gas prices are lower due to limited heating demand, to fill reserves for the winter. Following the closure of the Rough storage facility – a depleted gas field in the North Sea – in 2017, the UK has no long-term storage.
...

What actual difference would Rough being kept on (i.e. lots of investment to keep it running) made to the current situation?

We don't have a lack of gas; we have a lack of cheap gas.
I can't imagine Centrica, who owned and run Rough would have sold it for materially less than the market price.
Even then, when full, it was, what, 7 days of supply? Can't ser it would have made any real difference to what we're faced with now anyway.

I don't think it was feasible to keep Rough going. In simple terms it was leaking. At capacity it was about 9 days supply but would be used to handle peaks in demand, interruptions to supply from elsewhere and also help deal with price peaks from other sources eg the continent/Russia. If European prices were high they could sell from 'stock'. It was never intended that we emptied it in 9 days.
It was always a good thing to have, as other storage options are limited eg line-packing (increasing pressure in the medium pressure network).
You could also finish extracting with a rig and push the gas into storage if demand was low but you wanted to move the rig on.
There was talk of using another depleted field for storage but I don't think it happened.
The loss of storage means that we've lost resilience/security/flexibility. Not great in a strategically important supply.
I suppose it could have dampened price rises a bit if the stock was part of the traded market but that's secondary to not getting our nuts squeezed by the Russians when they feel like crimping supplies that we need over and above what we're producing at any point in time.

[Rockburner]

Just got back from Kop Hill, Chobham and Heston services are apparently out of fuel and the services at Beaconsfield has queues a half-hour long to get into the forecourt (that are blocking entry to the rest of the place)

On our road there's a mile long queue for a petrol station at midnight.

Its insane.

[Count Steer]

I used to work for Engie and a good friend of mine is a CEO there, if you have all the answers then maybe I can get him to find you a CEO slot so you can sort this mess out?

The CEO of Engie is going to be a bit surprised that her best mate thinks she's a bloke and is running an executive recruitment agency.

[Count Steer]

The CEO of Engie is going to be a bit surprised that her best mate thinks she's a bloke and is running an executive recruitment agency.

I said a CEO, not the CEO.

So you did. I was a little distracted as my motorcycle riding, nurse nephew was a little distraught after reading on the Internet that he had to buy hand-crafted, English shoes and he'd just seen the price of Charlie Churches. He thinks they're a bit pricey for the average essential worker. (He doesn't fancy being a CEO).
I told him not to worry and not to believe everything he reads on the Internet.

[Count Steer]

...be a good chap and suggest that he doesn't delude himself that he can speak with authority about poor UK wages, foreign trade, governments, offshore manufacturing, how to plan strategically, senior leadership and management, and other stuff that he thinks he knows about but actually knows zip.

He says 'There's enough posting on motorcycle forums without me doing it as well'. Smart lad.

[slowsider]

E.g. I guarantee that you own shoes made in a shithole by poorly paid staff, but few of you will spend the money to ensure that they were made in the UK by properly paid craftsmen.

yeah, school kids should all be wearing Loakes.

[slowsider]

yeah, school kids should all be wearing Loakes.

What is it that you want? Decent wages for UK craftsmen, or cheap Taiwanese shoes?
Decent wages for UK lorry drivers or cheap foreign drivers?

When do we want it?
NOW!.

Bit wordy, but the mob needs something to chant.

[cheb]

How about the concept that we have one pair of good shoes and not multiple pairs of cheap ones?

[Count Steer]

He says 'There's enough posting on motorcycle forums without me doing it as well'. Smart lad.

Good man, you should get him a decent pair of shoes for Christmas, poor chap.

I might, if he stops ing about his Alpinestar boots being made in China. Fortunately the Doc Martens that appear to be grafted on to his feet were made in Northampton.

[slowsider]

When do we want it?
NOW!.

Bit wordy, but the mob needs something to chant.

Thank goodness for that, I was worried you might be formulating a response based on fundamental economics, but instead we're taking the shop floor/building site approach of shouting at Boris to put magic money into peoples pockets

You've already noted that fundamental economics is sitting by and watching the chaos.
If the 'leadership' adopt populist policies, shouting louder is the way to draw attention.

[slowsider]

How about the concept that we have one pair of good shoes and not multiple pairs of cheap ones?

Cobblers.

[Count Steer]

E.g. I guarantee that you own shoes made in a shithole by poorly paid staff, but few of you will spend the money to ensure that they were made in the UK by properly paid craftsmen.

yeah, school kids should all be wearing Loakes.

Clarks Wayfinders with an animal paw print sole and a compass in the heel.