Yes Virginia, David can slay Goliath

The number of operable refineries have large capacities and are aging and thus have generally declined over the past few decades. The majority of refineries are concentrated along the Gulf Coast, particularly in states like Texas (47), Louisiana (19), and California (18).

Building new refineries is challenging due to high costs, large land footprints that easily exceed 1,000 acres, environmental concerns, and political opposition, especially as the nation focuses its mandates and subsidies toward the generation of JUST electricity from wind turbines and solar panels. Yet wind turbines and solar panels CANNOT support the supply chain of products to build anything, even to build more wind and solar!

Government policies are difficult to reverse. Onshore and offshore wind has been tied to three goals at once: decarbonization, electricity security, and industrial revitalization. Billions in subsidies through "green" funds are already committed, while local governments and industries expect contracts and jobs from these subsidized funds.

In effect, offshore wind has become a new type of public works project. Ports, construction companies, heavy industry, and trading houses all benefit from the government mandates to build more electricity generation from wind and solar, and the governments' financial support to build them. For politicians, it delivers regional development; for bureaucrats, it provides visible progress. Under these conditions, the withdrawal of corporate America investments is treated as a temporary setback and prompts no policy review.

Ukraine, the David trying to slay Goliath Russia, has been demonstrating via drone attacks at the heart of Russia's military and economy, by attacking Russian refineries that provide the fuels for their Goliath empire.

By chance, in October 2025 the Chevron refinery in Southern California had an apparent leak that ignited and temporarily ceased production of 40% of the jet fuel demanded in Southern California. The Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian refineries and the Chevron incident are strong messages to America's national security team that Goliath infrastructures are easy targets for "David".