Shell Executive Says – Americans Must Back Off Gasoline Consumption

He calls on Americans to cut demand

With gasoline prices topping $3 nationwide, many U.S. drivers and some lawmakers are accusing oil companies of intentionally keeping pump prices high to increase profits.

But Rob Routs, Royal Dutch Shell’s top executive over global refining operations, said the situation the U.S. finds itself in today has been years in the making and has to do more with the country’s shortage of refining capacity than any profiteering on the part of oil companies.

Americans, too, must “back off” on their gasoline consumption or energy costs will only keep rising, said Routs, a Dutch native who lives in The Hague and was in The Woodlands on Thursday for a conference. Routs, who also serves on Shell’s board, spoke with Chronicle reporter Brett Clanton during a break.

The country is short of refining capacity. That is a direct outflow of a business that, say, in 2003 and 2004 had an average return of 6 percent or lower.

For a while we were able to compensate with imports from Europe, and that is still happening. But obviously we’re in a different world right now … With refineries running close to 100 percent capacity, any little thing that happens has an impact. It is a matter of enough capacity. In order to build that capacity, you need four to five years. So we’ll have to wait till that catches up.

Houston Chronicle