BP said that its refining, pipeline and fuel distribution system is operating normally in the wake of Tuesday’s terrorist attacks in the United States and that the company has ample stocks of fuel for the U.S. market.
BP also announced that the company will continue to hold its wholesale gasoline prices and retail gasoline prices at its company-owned service stations steady today as it did yesterday after the attacks occurred.
BP is also asking wholesale and retail fuel customers to maintain normal purchasing habits.
Conoco said it has held the line at pre-attack levels on the prices it charges for gasoline at its company-owned stations and to its wholesale customers, and is encouraging its independent retailers to exercise similar restraint.
Richard Severance, president of Conoco's U.S. downstream operations, said supply conditions that exist now are no different than those that existed prior to the terrorist attacks, and therefore do not indicate that any abnormal increases in gasoline prices will be necessary.
Severance said that overall, ample supplies are available and discouraged panic buying, which could lead to local shortages. He added that Conoco would continue to exercise "common sense and restraint" in any pricing decisions.
