California Braces for Supply Gap as Gulf Crude Reaches Long Beach

California’s last Persian Gulf crude cargo has landed in Long Beach, highlighting the state’s growing reliance on foreign oil as it faces the potential loss of about 200,000 barrels per day if the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked; with aging fields and constrained refinery capacity, California may need to source crude from Canada, Brazil, Ecuador and other regions, while inventories and state planning cushion near-term risk and analysts warn prices could rise without stronger demand-side relief.