Autoblog

With gas prices as high as they are, it might seem hard to believe that some gas companies aren't profitable, but apparently Exxon Mobil isn't doing as well as they might wish. The company just announced that it will be selling off its gas stations for financial reasons. We suspect that the industry keeps itself shrouded in mystery to protect its profit at times, but Exxon Mobil, Chevron and ConocoPhillips, to name a few, have all stated that certain nebulous factors in the supply, demand and refinery process have led to a steep drop in profitability. You know, dozens of billions instead of hundreds. To that end Exxon, for one, is shedding its stations.

Included in the sale will be the company's namesake gas stations. The retail group includes 820 self-operated stations and about 1,400 dealer managed outlets. The company wants suitors to know that this isn't desperation and that it will take at least a few years to finalize any sale. Because of the way the competition reacts to moves like this in the oil industry, we might see quite a bit of this sort of thing in the near future, as well. Hopefully this won't mean further consolidation and even higher pump prices for us motorists. Thanks for the tip, Josh!

[Source: The Street, Photo by David McNew/Getty]

General Motors has fallen once again on the Fortune 500 list of America's top-grossers. The General had once stood strong atop the rankings, having fallen from the top spot in 2001 at which time Wal-Mart took over. For the last few years, Exxon-Mobil and the big box retailer have battled for the first two positions on the list with GM claiming third place. This year, soaring demands for energy have allowed Chevron to nudge past GM on its way to a third place finish. General Motors, at number four on the list, is bracketed by another energy company, ConocoPhillips, at number five. Ford finds itself sitting at number seven, the same as last year.

Fortune's 500 list is based on company revenue, not profit. If profit were the main criteria, GM and Ford wouldn't be making any appearances on the list at all. Exxon Mobil would easily claim the top spot as the most profitable company around with GM posting nearly as much in losses over the same period of time.

[Source: Fortune]

The nation's No. 2 oil producer Chevron had a "disappointing" 4th quarter, earning only $3.77 billion dollars in the closing months of 2006. You may be thinking that $3.77 billion can't be all that bad, but No. 1 oil producer ExxonMobil ended the same quarter with $10.25 billion in profits, nearly tripling its closest rival. Chevron's profit drop of 9% was expected by analysts after total revenue fell from $47.75 billion to $53.79 billion during the same period in 2005. In fact, Chevron actually beat analysts expectations by a penny per share, so the quarter wasn't that bad, it just looks that way in comparison to the record profits of ExxonMobil.

[Source: Reuters]

High gasoline prices have to be good for someone, and in news that will shock few, those fortunate men and women appear to work for Big Oil. Chevron, America's second largest oil company announced Friday that its first-quarter profits hit four billion dollars, a dramatic 49 percent increase over last year. With a profit of $1.80/share, that beat the Street by two cents.

Between ExxonMobil, Chevron and ConocoPhillips, America's top three oil companies raked in more than 15 billion dollars in profits this quarter.

[Source: San Jose Mercury News]

It would seem that if there are two parties who really shouldn't be playing the blame game regarding the world's energy problems: oil companies and auto manufacturers. That certainly hasn't stopped either from taking shots at each other in the media, however. Late last year, ExxonMobil apparently started running print ads that took automakers to task for a lack of fuel efficiency improvements in the past twenty years. In response, Chrysler VP of communications Jason Vines decided to strike back with a post on the company's blog.

We're not quite sure what to make of this fight so far, but it seems like both sides are waging a war in an attempt to win public sympathy that simply doesn't exist. It seems rather strange that ExxonMobil is upset that it has turned record profits recently largely on the back of the automotive industry, and indeed, it would be hard to argue that Big Oil has been proactive in bringing new energy solutions to the market. Of course, some critics would charge that carmakers haven't exactly been aggressive in their development of fuel-efficient vehicles. In both cases, the consumer has ultimately been in charge of the decision-making, but blaming customers has never been a successful marketing tactic.

If you'd like to take a side, feel free to do so in the comments. As for us, we'd rather see cooperation between automakers and energy suppliers to improve the situation.

[Source: The Detroit News; image from Frank Galasso]