Editing Propane (section)

== Production ==
Propane is produced as a [[by-product]] of two other processes, [[natural gas processing]] and [[Oil refinery|petroleum refining]]. The processing of natural gas involves removal of [[butane]], propane, and large amounts of [[ethane]] from the raw gas, to prevent condensation of these volatiles in natural gas pipelines. Additionally, oil refineries produce some propane as a by-product of [[cracking (chemistry)|cracking]] petroleum into gasoline or heating oil.

The supply of propane cannot easily be adjusted to meet increased demand, because of the by-product nature of propane production. About 90% of U.S. propane is domestically produced.<ref name="Sloan-2016" /> The United States imports about 10% of the propane consumed each year, with about 70% of that coming from Canada via pipeline and rail. The remaining 30% of imported propane comes to the United States from other sources via ocean transport.

After it is separated from the crude oil, North American propane is stored in huge [[Natural gas storage#Salt formation|salt caverns]]. Examples of these are [[Fort Saskatchewan]], [[Alberta]]; [[Mont Belvieu, Texas]]; and [[Conway, Kansas]]. These salt caverns<ref>{{cite web |author=Argonne National Laboratory |year=1999 |title=Salt Cavern Information Center |url=http://web.ead.anl.gov/saltcaverns/uses/hcstorage/index.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071223143256/http://web.ead.anl.gov/saltcaverns/uses/hcstorage/index.htm |archive-date=2007-12-23 |access-date=2007-12-22}}</ref> can store {{convert|80000000|oilbbl|m3}} of propane.

=== Retail cost ===
{{Globalize|article|USA|2name=the United States|date=August 2017}}

==== United States ====
{{As of|2013|10}}, the retail cost of propane was approximately $2.37 per gallon, or roughly $25.95 per 1 million BTUs.<ref>{{cite web|url =http://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/pet_pri_wfr_dcus_nus_m.htm|title = Heating Oil and Propane Prices|author = US Energy Information Administration|date = November 12, 2013}}</ref> This means that filling a 500-gallon propane tank, which is what households that use propane as their main source of energy usually require, cost $948 (80% of 500 gallons or 400 gallons), a 7.5% increase on the 2012–2013 winter season average US price.<ref>{{cite web|url =http://propanedeal.com/prices/current-propane-prices|title = Current Propane Prices|author = Propane Deal|date = November 12, 2013}}</ref> However, propane costs per gallon change significantly from one state to another: the Energy Information Administration (EIA) quotes a $2.995 per gallon average on the East Coast for October 2013,<ref>{{cite web|url =http://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/pet_pri_wfr_dcus_R10_m.htm|title = East Coast Heating Oil and Propane Prices|author = US Energy Information Administration|date = November 12, 2013}}</ref> while the figure for the Midwest was $1.860 for the same period.<ref>{{cite web|url =http://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/pet_pri_wfr_dcus_R20_m.htm|title = Midwest Heating Oil and Propane Prices|author = US Energy Information Administration|date = November 12, 2013}}</ref>

{{As of|2015|12}}, the propane retail cost was approximately $1.97 per gallon,<ref name=EIAdecember2015>{{cite web|url=http://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/pet_pri_wfr_a_epllpa_prs_dpgal_w.htm|title=Residential Propane: Weekly Heating Oil and Propane Prices (October – March)|author=US Energy Information Administration|date=December 12, 2015}}</ref> which meant filling a 500-gallon propane tank to 80% capacity costed $788, a 16.9% decrease or $160 less from November 2013. Similar regional differences in prices are present with the December 2015 EIA figure for the East Coast at $2.67 per gallon and the Midwest at $1.43 per gallon.<ref name=EIAdecember2015 />

{{As of|2018|8}}, the average US propane retail cost was approximately $2.48 per gallon. The wholesale price of propane in the U.S. always drops in the summer as most homes do not require it for home heating. The wholesale price of propane in the summer of 2018 was between 86 cents to 96 cents per U.S. gallon, based on a truckload or railway car load. The price for home heating was exactly double that price; at 95 cents per gallon wholesale, a home-delivered price was $1.90 per gallon if ordered 500 gallons at a time. Prices in the Midwest are always less than in California. Prices for home delivery always go up near the end of August or the first few days of September when people start ordering their home tanks to be filled.<ref name=EIAaugust2018>{{cite web|url=http://www.eia.gov/dnav/pet/pet_pri_wfr_a_epllpa_prs_dpgal_w.htm|title=Residential Propane: Weekly Heating Oil and Propane Prices (October – March)|author=US Energy Information Administration|date=August 11, 2018}}</ref>