Net imports of jet fuel into the West Coast have increased in recent years as regional jet fuel consumption has outpaced production.

The Energy Department's Energy Information Administration (EIA) says that states in the West Coast region — those bordering the Pacific Ocean plus Nevada and Arizona — make up about 20 percent of the U.S. population and nearly a third of U.S. jet fuel consumption. Most of these jet fuel imports have come from refineries in Asia, EIA says.

West Coast jet fuel consumption increased by 6 percent in 2016 and by another 5 percent in 2017, averaging 527,000 barrels per day (b/d) through December. In particular, Alaska and Hawaii have higher per capita jet fuel use because of their remote locations, using 13 and five times the Source: Energy Information Administrationnational average, respectively.

EIA says that a number of factors have driven increases in jet fuel consumption since 2014. The average jet fuel price dropped to $1.53 per gallon in 2015, compared with an average price of $2.92 from 2012 to 2014, mostly because of lower crude oil prices. In addition, economic and population growth since 2012 in the West Coast region have been higher than the U.S. average.

Because of the West Coast’s relative isolation from areas of production, higher imports have largely met the region’s increasing jet fuel demand, EIA says. From 2012 through 2014, nearly all (98 percent) of the region’s jet fuel demand was met by production within West Coast states. This share fell to 87 percent from 2015 through 2017 as consumption increased.

Imports came primarily from South Korea, China and Japan. In 2016, West Coast jet fuel imports from these three countries totaled 87,000 b/d, or 96 percent of total jet fuel imports into the West Coast. In 2017, West Coast jet fuel imports from these countries increased again, reaching 93,000 b/d and accounting for 99 percent of total imports into the region.