As I flipped through the TV channels during my youth, a catchy tune often beckoned me “to listen to a story ‘bout a man named Jed.” Jed and his fictional Clampett family got rich and moved to Beverly Hills, CA after selling the rights to drill for the Texas tea (crude oil) on their land. Yesterday’s yarns about petroleum parallel today’s narratives about natural gas. Natural gas has created billionaires in the Bayou and natural gas millionaires in Pennsylvania and other states with shale gas deposits.

The Department of Commerce recently introduced the Assess Costs Everywhere tool, which outlines the costs and risks firms need to weigh when considering location of manufacturing operations and supply chains. Trade financing and associated costs are especially relevant to manufacturers with overseas suppliers. These firms must consider more than just the selling prices of the items they plan to purchase. Purchasing goods and supplies from foreign countries requires different payment methods from buying domestically.

The Department of Commerce’s recently released Assess Costs Everywhere (ACE) tool helps firms understand the total costs and risks associated with deciding where to locate their operations or supply chains. These costs range from labor and shipping to product quality to regulatory compliance. We will explore travel costs in this blog.