The Diesel Crisis That Could Send Gas to $10 Overnight

In this episode of the Stansberry Investor Hour, host and guest Tracy Schuchart dive deep into the looming global diesel crisis, driven by a decades-long decline in refining capacity, regulatory hurdles, and geopolitical risks—particularly around the Strait of Hormuz. Schuchart, a seasoned commodity-focused investor, explains how the U.S. has not built a new refinery since 1977, leading to a fragile supply chain where even a short power outage in data center hubs like Loudoun County could trigger a 3% national spike in diesel demand and push prices to $10 per gallon. The conversation expands to global supply chain vulnerabilities, including Europe’s reliance on imported diesel, California’s refinery shutdowns, and the irony of aging refineries being converted into import terminals. Schuchart also highlights the interconnectedness of commodities—from sulfuric acid and helium to fertilizers and hydrogen—showing how disruptions in one sector ripple across the economy. She warns that financialization has outpaced physical infrastructure, and that the U.S. is now facing a systemic failure to build critical energy infrastructure due to NIMBYism, permitting delays, and political hostility. Despite the risks, Schuchart remains bullish on commodities, especially gold and South American commodity equities like Cressy (C-R-E-S-Y) and Agro (A-G-R-O), arguing that hard assets are essential in a world of inflation, central bank gold buying, and energy transition failures. The episode concludes with a call to action: investors must reevaluate their portfolios and embrace commodities as a core hedge against systemic risk.