A Self-Imposed Energy Crisis Looms In California

BusinessEnergyA Self-Imposed Energy Crisis Looms In CaliforniaByDavid Blackmon,Senior Contributor.Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. David Blackmon is a Texas-based public policy analyst/consultant.Follow AuthorApr 23, 2026, 01:47pm EDT--:-- / --:--This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.This voice experience is generated by AI. Learn more.High gas prices are listed at Chevron gas station in Los Angeles on March 9, 2026, as gasoline prices surge amid the ongoing war with Iran. The Iran war has sent oil prices soaring on March 9 after Tehran, under new leader Mojtaba Khamenei, fired a new barrage of missiles at its Gulf neighbours and signalled that the strategic Strait of Hormuz would likely remain shut. (Photo by Frederic J. BROWN / AFP via Getty Images)AFP via Getty ImagesA new paper released by a team of researchers at The University of Southern California (USC) and California University-Berkeley (UCB) warns that the Golden State could soon face energy crisis conditions created by anti-oil and gas state policies and the global supply shock. The paper authored by USC Professor Michael Mische, UCB Prof. James Rector and UCB Graduate Research Assistant Joseph Silvi, finds that the state’s gasoline market is “entering a period of acute supply shortages directly attributable to prior refinery closures, and the long-term systemic decline in in-state crude oil production which have been further exacerbated by the ongoing war in the Middle East.”Alarmingly, the researchers warn that “dramatic reductions in gasoline and crude imports have yet to hit California’s physical supply. California depends heavily on CARB (California Air Resource Board)-compliant gasoline from Asian refiners which provide nearly all of California’s gasoline imports--roughly 20% of the overall gasoline supply for the state.” Most Asian refiners have been forced to curtail exports of refined products since March 1 due to the disruption of crude exports...