islandpacket.com - The Island Packet Online

Search everything in the Lowcountry and the Coastal Empire.

DeMint encourages building oil refineries

Add Comment

WASHINGTON -- Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., has co-sponsored a bill with Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., aimed at encouraging construction of oil refineries in regions without concentrated production so a natural disaster or terrorist attack can't "knock out" the country's energy supply.

The Gas PRICE Act would offer incentives to build refineries on closed military bases in an effort to reduce dependence on Gulf Coast refineries.

"It's stupid for us as Americans to continue expanding our economy without expanding our energy supply," DeMint said.

He said he hoped to move the bill quickly through the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and present it to the full Senate this year. Setbacks for quick approval likely would stem from environmental concerns.

DeMint said the bill would offer tax incentives and loan guarantees, along with federal financial aid to cover the cost of building a refinery. For the plan to be financially feasible, new refineries would need to be located on vacant military bases near coastlines and ports.

"We should be looking at things inland and spreading our refining capacities so that a hurricane or terrorist could not knock out our supply," he said.

DeMint said another goal was to streamline the permitting process and get past outdated environmental restrictions.

A spokesman from the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control said officials had not yet reviewed the bill.

Dave Woodard, a Clemson University political science professor, said sites near ports would be easier for transporting crude oil to refineries, but shipment issues are not what they used to be.

He said refineries are concentrated in the Gulf and along the West Coast because of transportation issues between 1950 and 1970. The last refinery was built in the late 1970s; Woodard said technology would allow for easier construction and improved design compared with today's maze of pipes.

"It's like watching a black-and-white television when there are flat screens today," he said.

He said new technology and more shipping options, such as pipelines, make the bill's proposal feasible.

Sims Floyd, executive director for Columbia-based South Carolina Petroleum Marketers Association, said the expense could hinder the bill's success, but called it a step in the right direction.

"Trying to spread our capacity around the U.S. could help (consumers) as far as supply issues in the future when you're dealing with natural disasters," he said. "But there will be no short-term, quick fix for this."

DeMint said that the bill would be the first step in reducing the need for petroleum-based fuels.

"That's a dual priority -- not just to expand our supply but to expand the alternative fuels," he said. "But we just have to recognize that it's going to be decades before we can get there, so in the meantime we need to make sure we have (fuel) available to run our economy."

Lauren Wilbert reports for the Medill News Service in Washington. To comment on this story, please go to islandpacket.com.