US refiners continue to respond to a changed competitive environment with additional investments and aggressive oil product export deals, speakers said during the US Energy Information Administration’s 2014 energy conference’s opening day. Flat US demand has made exports more attractive, but feedstocks and regulations continue to matter, “and the industry is deintegrating,” Joanne M. Shore, chief industry analyst at the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers , said during a July 14 session on changing global product trade flows. “Our surplus has allowed the US to change from a net product importer to a net exporter,” Shore said. “Rail has been a tremendous boon in moving crude to refineries. So have pipelines.” Not every US refinery has access to discounted crude, Shore said. Plants in the Midwest and Rocky Mountains have ample supplies, but situations for East Coast, Gulf Coast, and West Coast refineries have not changed much, she […]