Even now there are dozens of projects on the books with US refiners struggling to make a profit. Are they obligated to build as much capacity as is required to keep margins at bare minimum so you can have cheap fuel? ho ho ho, pull the other one.
The short termism is that of the financial sector and the levels of returns demanded by the "private" sector for investment.
Refineries, pipelines, storage and other similar infrastructure are essentially utilities, as are airlines in many areas.
If push comes to shove and they all go bust, do you see governments not stepping in? "Any economic unit can emit money. The serious problem is to get it accepted" Hyman Minsky
That's a problem with the thinking of some on the left. They believe refiners should just be there to cover their needs without recognizing there's a two way street implicit in that bargain. You can't have cheap and steady.
