EIA revises petroleum products demand data

A recent revision to petroleum product movements in the Petroleum Supply Monthly (PSM) has increased estimated consumption of gasoline in the East coast and lowered that in the Gulf Coast of the US.

The data revision involves movements of motor gasoline as reported to the EIA by a survey respondent. The decline in motor gasoline movements from PADD* 3 to PADD 1 reported in the PSM began in October 2012. This coincided with Hurricane Sandy affecting the East Coast, which initially masked the misreported data. However, the decline continued long after the storm and it was later discovered that the data had been misreported by one of the respondents.

Total PADD level receipts (imports) of petroleum is an important variable in product supplied calculations; net receipts reflect the difference between receipts of that product from other PADDs and movements out of the PADD to other PADDs by pipeline, tanker, rail and barge. Overstating the net receipts in a given PADD would artificially inflate the product supplied for that PADD, while understating them would have the opposite effect.

The largest change in product movements was to gasoline however other products were also affected, particularly distillate fuel oil. Corrected data for October – December 2012 will be reflected in the upcoming 2012 Petroleum Supply Annual, corrected data for January – March 2013 will be reflected in the 2013 Petroleum Supply Annual.

* The Petroleum Administration for Defense Districts (PADDs) are geographic aggregations of the 50 States and the District of Columbia into five districts: PADD 1 is the East Coast, PADD 2 the Midwest, PADD 3 the Gulf Coast, PADD 4 the Rocky Mountain Region, and PADD 5 the West Coast. Due to its large population, PADD 1 is further divided into sub-PADDs, with PADD 1A as New England, PADD 1B the Central Atlantic States, and PADD 1C comprising the Lower Atlantic States. There are two additional PADDs (PADDs VI and VII) that encompass U.S. Territories. The PADDs help users of EIA's petroleum data assess regional petroleum product supplies.

Adapted from press release by Emma McAleavey.

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