Petroleum Marketing Communication Letters

Department of Energy
Washington, DC 20585

Date

[Contact person]
[Company Name]
[Company Address]
[City, State, Zip Code]
Dear [Contact person]:
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) is the statistical and analytical agency within
the U.S. Department of Energy. EIA collects, analyzes, and disseminates independent and impartial
energy information to promote sound policymaking, efficient markets, and public understanding of
energy and its interaction with the economy and the environment. EIA conducts a comprehensive
data collection program that covers the full spectrum of energy sources, end uses, and energy flows.
In the coming days, an EIA representative will contact you with regards to the EIA-182, “Domestic
Crude Oil First Purchase Report.” EIA would like you to answer some questions about your
company and its involvement in the petroleum industry. Information collected is used to help
maintain EIA’s frame of petroleum companies and to determine eligibility for various EIA
surveys. Information about the EIA-182 is available on EIA’s website
http://www.eia.gov/survey/#eia-182.
EIA appreciates your cooperation in providing this important information. If you have any
questions, you may contact the survey manager, XXX.
Sincerely,
Robert Merriam
Director, Office of Petroleum and Biofuels Statistics
U.S. Energy Information Administration

Department of Energy
Washington, DC 20585

September 13, 2021
Dear EIA-877 Respondent:
On behalf of the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), I want to thank you for participating in the
State Heating Oil and Propane Program (SHOPP) and for providing timely, valuable information that
benefits our nation, U.S. consumers, and industry.
Heating Fuel Prices (weekly)
From October 4, 2021 through March 28, 2022, an EIA or state energy office representative will call you for
your residential propane or No. 2 heating oil price on Monday (Tuesday if Monday is a holiday).
•
•

Report the retail residential price per gallon (excluding all taxes) for residential customers that is
offered to the public on the reference day (credit/keep-full prices being preferred). The price should be
for local residential customers with storage tanks of approximately 275 gallons.
Do not include in your reported price any discounts for payment of cash, or contract prices for
residential customers under supply contracts. See instruction for further guidance:
https://www.eia.gov/survey/#eia-877

Your response to this survey is mandatory and required pursuant to 15 U.S.C. 764(b), 772(b) and 790a of
the Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974. EIA estimates that the average reporting burden each week
for this survey is 6 minutes.
The information you provide on Form EIA-877 will be used for statistical purposes only and is
confidential by law. In accordance with the Confidential Information Protection and Statistical Efficiency
Act of 2018 and other applicable Federal laws, your responses will not be disclosed in identifiable form
without your consent. Per the Federal Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2015, Federal information systems
are protected from malicious activities through cybersecurity screening of transmitted data. Every EIA
employee, as well as every agent, is subject to a jail term, a fine, or both if he or she makes public ANY
identifiable information you report to EIA.
When there is a market disruption or supply and price volatility in heating fuel markets, the SHOPP data
provides an objective measure of market conditions at the state level to facilitate communication between
heating fuel marketers and the government. Aggregated data (averages across all responding companies) will
be published weekly on the Heating Oil and Propane Update page at
http://www.eia.gov/petroleum/heatingoilpropane and the Winter Heating Fuels page on EIA’s website at
http://www.eia.gov/special/heatingfuels/.
Please keep a copy of your survey responses for your records. If you have any questions, or need assistance
in responding to this survey, please contact the Survey Manager, XXX, or visit
https://www.eia.gov/survey/#eia-877.
Sincerely,
Thomas Leckey
Acting Director, Office of Survey Operations
U.S. Energy Information Administration
U.S. Department of Energy

February 24, 2021
EIA ID:

DBA:
Dear :
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) is conducting the EIA-821, Annual Fuel Oil
and Kerosene Sales Report, survey for the reference year 2020. The mandatory survey collects
annual sales volumes of kerosene, distillate and residual fuel oils by energy-use category at the state
level. In addition, the 2020 survey also collects data on motor gasoline and propane by energy-use
category at the state level. The motor gasoline section requests volumes of conventional and
reformulated motor gasoline for: retail, wholesale, and total sales. Any sales of oxygenated gasoline
should be included in the conventional gasoline category. The propane section requests volumes for
residential, all other end use, wholesale, and total sales
Attached you will find:
• The survey form for the 2020 reference year
• Instructions for completing the survey
• Reference guide
EIA is asking that survey respondents use electronic copies of the survey materials and return
completed survey forms electronically using EIA’s Secure File Transfer (SFT). This will help
better protect your company’s data, reduce mail out costs and paper, and expedite processing of
your form. The survey form, instructions, frequently asked questions, and reference guide are
available on EIA’s website at: http://www.eia.gov/survey/#eia-821. The survey form is available in
both spreadsheet format (XLS) and in portable document format (PDF).
The completed form must be returned to EIA by May 7, 2021. Your response to this survey is
mandatory and the data are essential for EIA to prepare accurate and timely reports that our country
uses for forecasting and energy consumption programs and to determine current and projected fuel
oil needs on a national, regional, and state basis.
When completing PART 1 of the electronic form, please include the above EIA ID in the space
provided. Questions concerning sanctions for failing to submit your form and confidentiality of
your information are addressed in the instructions. For additional questions or assistance in
completing the form, please call toll free 1-855-342-4872.
To better protect the security of your company’s business-sensitive data, EIA will only accept
electronic survey forms sent via EIA’s SFT. SFT uses industry-standard encryption to enable the
secure sending of emailed information over the web, and will return a confirmation receipt for you.
To do so, use this link and follow the simple instructions to upload one or more of your documents:
https://signon.eia.doe.gov/upload/noticeoog.jsp. You can also contact us at 1-855-342-4872 with
questions or for help with this process.
To use SFT:
• Click the link https://signon.eia.doe.gov/upload/noticeoog.jsp
• Click Accept
• Enter your contact information

•
•
•

Click Browse to select the appropriate file(s) on your computer
Click Submit File(s)
You will receive a confirmation number

The form can also be returned by fax to 1-202-586-9772, ATTN: EIA-821.
Company Reporting Requirements:
•

If your firm has “Permanently ceased operation,” been “Sold,” “Merged,” or “Leased” to
another company during 2020, you are required to provide information on Form EIA-821
for that portion of 2020 in which the firm was active under your ownership and control.
Please check the appropriate boxes in Item 12 and fill in Items 13-21.

•

EIA recognizes that some firms may not have the information requested on sales for
different energy uses readily available. If your firm does not maintain this information,
estimates of sales volumes may be provided. The basis for the estimates must be consistent
with the standard accounting records maintained by the firm. The estimating procedure and
data supporting the estimates should result in a reasonably accurate estimate, which will be
subject to review.

•

Report the entire firm's sales of kerosene, distillate and residual fuel oils. To avoid
duplication of data, EIA prefers that the parent company file Form EIA-821 for itself and all
subsidiaries. If you are a subsidiary or a commissioned agent of another company, mark Box
“c” or Box “d” in Item 12, fill in Items 13-21, and return the form to EIA in the enclosed
envelope. However, if you are a subsidiary and want to report sales volumes for yourself
and/or the parent company, EIA requests that you fill in Items 12-21 on the form and return.
If you are a parent company and a subsidiary is reporting your sales volumes, EIA requests
that you fill in Item 12 on the form and return.

•

If you receive more than one copy of this letter with different EIA ID numbers for the same
company, please call toll free 1-855-342-4872 as soon as possible.

Aggregate results of this survey will be available in the Fuel Oil and Kerosene Sales, 2020 report at
the end of the year along with historical reports on EIA’s website at: http://www.eia.gov/. Your
company’s individual data will not be made public.
Please keep a copy of your completed survey form for your files.
Thank you in advance for your cooperation in providing EIA with this important energy data.
Sincerely,
Robert Merriam, Director
Office of Energy Production, Conversion & Delivery
U.S. Energy Information Administration

July 30, 2021
DOE ID:

Attn:
Thank you for your monthly response on the EIA-782A, “Refiners'/Gas Plant Operators'
Monthly Petroleum Product Sales Report.” Please continue to file your forms as you have
through the June 2021 reference month. However, we are asking that you begin using the attached
July 2021 update to the Exclusionary List beginning with the July 2021 reference month. Please
exclude all sales to companies included on this edition of the Exclusionary List. Company names
that have been added, deleted, or edited are noted for your convenience.
EIA reviews the Exclusionary List for accuracy and completeness on a quarterly basis in January,
April, July, and October, and issues an update as needed. We will only notify survey respondents if
there is a revised edition of the Exclusionary List. You may also check EIA’s website for the most
recent edition of the Exclusionary List through the following link to our Survey Forms page:
http://www.eia.gov/survey/#eia-782a
Please note this Exclusionary List is significantly different from the one to be used when filing the
EIA-782C, “Monthly Report of Prime Supplier Sales of Petroleum Products Sold for Local
Consumption.” An updated list for filing the EIA-782C report has been sent separately. In order to
maintain the integrity and consistency of the reported data, it is very important that the appropriate
Exclusionary List be used for each survey.
We appreciate your continued cooperation and important contribution to the EIA-782A survey. If
you have any questions or comments regarding the EIA-782A Exclusionary List, please contact our
survey staff at 1-855-342-4872 or oog.surveys@eia.doe.gov.
Respectfully,
Tammy Heppner
Team Lead, Petroleum Marketing Statistics Team
Office of Energy Production, Conversion, & Delivery
U. S. Energy Information Administration

Department of Energy
Washington, DC 20585
April 30, 2020

STATION MANAGER
Station Name
«Address»
«CITY», «State» «Zip_Code»

EIA ID:
STATION ID:

Dear Station Manager,
Your station has been selected for the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) mandatory weekly
Form EIA-878, Motor Gasoline Price Survey. Your station’s price information is key to producing accurate
weekly price statistics that are critical to U.S. consumers, businesses, and policymakers, including Congress
and state/local governments. There are two parts to the EIA-878 survey:
Schedule A (weekly report of retail prices, required for several years)
• Starting in month year, your station will be contacted every Monday to provide the retail price(s)
of motor gasoline by grade sold.
Schedule B (one-time report of annual sales volume) ACTION REQUIRED NOW
• Please complete and submit the enclosed Schedule B form within 10 days of receiving this notice.
Because this data is important, we will recontact your station until this information is submitted.
• If you do not have a full year of sales data, please state in the Schedule B Comments section the
months your sales volumes represent.
The information you provide on Form EIA-878 will be used for statistical purposes only and is confidential by
law.
Please note that your response to this survey is mandatory and required pursuant to 15 U.S.C., Sections
764(b), 772(b) and 790a of the Federal Energy Administration Act of 1974. Title 18 USC 1001 makes it a
criminal offense for any person knowingly and willingly to make to any agency or Department of the United
States any false, fictitious, or fraudulent statements as to any matter within its jurisdiction. EIA estimates that
the average reporting burden for this survey is 6.5 minutes per response.
If you have any questions regarding the EIA-878 gasoline price survey, please contact XXX or visit our FAQ
page at https://www.eia.gov/survey/form/eia_878/faqs.php.
I appreciate your station’s future participation and contribution to this important weekly price survey and
thank you in advance for providing timely, valuable information that benefits our nation and U.S. consumers
and industry.
Sincerely,
Robert Merriam, Director
Office of Energy Production, Conversion, & Delivery
U.S. Energy Information Administration

Enclosures:
EIA-878 Motor Gasoline Price Survey, Schedule B
EIA-878 Motor Gasoline Price Survey Instructions
Business Reply Envelope

Month Day, Year

STATION MANAGER
Station Name
Address Line
City, State ZIP
Dear Station Manager,
Your station listed above has been participating in the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s
(EIA) mandatory weekly gasoline price survey entitled EIA-878, Motor Gasoline Price Survey. This
letter is to notify you that this station is no longer required to report for the EIA-878.
The data you have provided was key to producing accurate price averages at the national, regional,
and select state and city levels. These price statistics are critical to U.S. consumers, businesses, and
policymakers, including Congress and state/local governments. To help ensure an accurate
representation of the industry, a sample of stations of all sizes selected by EIA are required to
participate in this gasoline price survey. To help share the reporting burden, EIA periodically chooses
a new sample of stations to report from among all U.S. stations.
Your station was not reselected to report in the latest EIA-878 survey but does remain eligible to be
selected for future samples. If you are currently reporting on any other Department of Energy survey
form(s), please continue to report on those forms until EIA notifies you otherwise.
I appreciate your station’s participation and contribution to this important weekly price survey and
thank you for providing timely, valuable information that benefited our nation and U.S. consumers
and industry.
Sincerely,
Robert Merriam, Director
Office of Petroleum and Biofuels Statistics
U.S. Energy Information Administration

Department of Energy
Washington, DC 20585

Month dd, yyyy

STATION MANAGER
STATION NAME or CURRENT STATION
ADDRESS
CITY, STATE ZIP
Dear Station Manager,
According to U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) records, we have not received your station’s
retail on-highway diesel price data since Month Day, yyyy. My staff’s repeated efforts to obtain this readily
available, mandatory price information from your station have been unsuccessful. I am writing to ask that you
take immediate steps to begin providing this important data starting on Monday.
Your responsibility to accurately and timely report on Form EIA-888, “On-Highway Diesel Fuel Price
Survey," is mandatory, pursuant to 15 U.S.C., Sections 764(b), 772(b), and 790a of the Federal Energy
Administration Act of 1974. Continued noncompliance may result in civil penalties or fines, as stated in the
“Sanctions” section of the form’s instructions (www.eia.gov/survey/form/eia_888/instructions.pdf). Please
note however, that our goal is not to impose fines, but to simply obtain your station’s retail on-highway diesel
fuel price each week that EIA uses to publish important regional and national statistics relied upon by our
country. Please also be assured that the information you provide is confidential and will be used for
statistical purposes only.
The current way your station is set to report to us is by a call every Monday morning from my staff requesting
your cash pump price for on-highway diesel fuel including all taxes as of 8:00 a.m. that day. The phone
number we have on file for you is (xxx) xxx-xxxx. We also offer other options for you to report if you prefer to
not get a call each Monday morning, which include:
•
•
•
•

Web Survey – you report prices each Monday using a secure online survey form;
You Call EIA – you call each Monday to 1-877-267-2879 to report prices to an EIA staffer;
Email – you send prices each Monday to a secure email account; or
Fax – you fax prices to us each Monday using a secure, toll-free fax number.

I hope you now realize the importance of your station’s timely reporting to EIA every Monday starting next
week. If you have additional questions about the ways to report as described above, or to update your contact
information, please call 1-877-267-2879. You can also find more information at our Frequently Asked
Questions page at: www.eia.gov/survey/form/eia_888/faqs.php, or contact XXX.
EIA appreciates your efforts to provide this important information each week and hopes that no further action
to impose sanctions will be necessary.
Sincerely,
Thomas J. Leckey
Assistant Administrator
Office of Energy Statistics
U.S. Energy Information Administration