Episode 69 - Mr. Bolton's Persian trouble | Freedom Gas | Russia | Eric Peters (epautos.com) - a podcast by Ryan Ray & Ellen Wald

epautos.com - https://www.ericpetersautos.com/

Ethanol-free gas stations - https://www.pure-gas.org/

Pompeo says Iran attacked oil tankers to raise global oil price
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-iran-pompeo/pompeo-says-iran-attacked-oil-tankers-to-raise-global-oil-price-idUSKCN1T02MH
- US is looking for UN Security Council to put more sanctions on Iran and building the case for these sanctions.
- Also building support for this from the GCC and Arab states
- How likely is a UN Security Council resolution? Not likely because Russia and China are likely to veto

US oil falls 5.5% to $53.50 per barrel on fresh trade worries
https://www.cnbc.com/2019/05/31/oil-market-us-tariffs-on-mexico-iranian-oil-sanctions-in-focus.html
- oil dropped like a stone when the Trump administration announced impending tariffs on imports from Mexico
- this would impact the energy trade and there is a lot of energy going back and forth between Mexico
- If Mexico put reciprocal tariffs on US gasoline that Pemex is importing from the US, can Pemex afford it?

‘Freedom Gas,’ the Next American Export
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/05/29/us/freedom-gas-energy-department.html
- not Rick Perry’s brightest moment

Russia's May oil output hits 11-month low on dirty oil crisis
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-russia-energy-production/russias-may-oil-output-hits-11-month-low-on-dirty-oil-crisis-idUSKCN1T306T
- this is an important issue but isn’t impacting the market that much because all everyone cares about now is trade outlook

Guest Eric Peters - www.epautos.com
EVs and Tesla - where are we with the EV market?
They aren’t really viable. About 1% of all vehicles on the road. Most of those in California and Arizona which have mandates that force companies that produce cars in their state to make a certain percentage of EVs.
Problems remains - cost, range and slow charging times even with rapid charge.
Impractical and unaffordable.

How long does an EV battery last? Spare parts issues?
Real problem is the cost of replacing the battery compared to the cost of the vehicle itself. Begin to degrade in performance after 7-8 years. Same issues with batteries in ICE cars, but replacing battery is a hundred dollars or so. Replacing an EV battery is several thousand dollars and the car might only be worth $7,000 by then.

Who are EVs right for?
People who want to buy expensive cars. For most people it doesn’t add up. Nissan Leaf is cheapest EV on market and its $30,000. Compare that to Nilsson Versa ICE which is $14,000. Range of EV goes down in cold and when using “extras” like air conditioning.

Tesla is best EV model for performance.
EV pick up truck coming next year
Hybrid vehicles - much more successful and don’t suffer from many of the functional problems that EVs suffer from. Basically carries around its own charger. Problem with hybrids is cost - costs $3,000 more than comparable vehicle.
Car companies lose money on every electric car that is built. Tesla loses money on every car it seems. Tesla makes money selling credits to car companies that don’t manufacture electric vehicles and have to pay for these credits because of government mandates.

Why aren’t there $15,000 EVs even if they aren’t fast or fancy? The way the government mandates impacted EV development disincentivized companies from developing this.

On ethanol
It is water attracted, which is problematic for boats and for power tools that aren’t designed to handle it.
Www.puregas.com to see where ethanol-free gasoline is available
Use for generators too!

US federal regulations for fuel and mileage standards push companies to make expensive but incrementally more fuel economical vehicles. They are too expensive for people to buy.

Further episodes of 301 Moved Permanently

Further podcasts by Ryan Ray & Ellen Wald

Website of Ryan Ray & Ellen Wald