Blarney Castle Oil & Propane to buy all 20 of Fleming Oil's Michigan c-stores

Blarney Castle Oil & Propane, a Bear Lake propane marketer that also runs fuel retail, is buying all 20 of Fleming Oil Co.'s Michigan convenience stores. The stores add inside sales and fuel volume that hold up year-round, unlike delivered propane. Terms weren't disclosed.

Sunoco Pipeline split

Energy Transfer has asked the Pennsylvania PUC to dissolve Sunoco Pipeline and move its assets into two new companies. One would hold the natural gas liquids lines, including the Mariner East system that carries propane and other NGLs out of the Marcellus. The other would hold refined petroleum product pipelines. For propane marketers in the Northeast, Mariner East is a big part of how supply reaches them, so operators should watch what a separate NGL-only company does with rates and service once the PUC rules. Nothing changes at the rack today. This is a corporate reorganization that still needs the regulator's sign-off.

The Cuisinart recall

Cuisinart's stainless steel propane grill, sold at Lowe's and Walmart, is being recalled over a risk that the glass can shatter. If you stock grills at the counter, pull it. Grilling season is peak cylinder-exchange season, and a recall on a popular unit could mean returns and questions at the register.

Two tank arrests

Two propane crime stories hit the wires. Sheriff's deputies in Olympia, Washington made a SWAT arrest after an alleged assault involving a propane tank. In Tampa, a man was caught on video carrying a flaming propane tank into a restaurant and taken into custody on several charges. Neither moves the market. Both feed the public's unease about cylinders, which is part of why LP Gas Magazine ran a piece this week on how state associations do the industry's political and safety work.

What to watch

Whether the Pennsylvania PUC signs off on the Energy Transfer request, and whether a standalone NGL pipeline company changes anything on Mariner East rates or service. Closer to the ground, watch how the Cuisinart recall plays out at retail during grilling season, and whether more propane retailers follow Blarney Castle in buying up independent c-store chains in the Upper Midwest.