I see it as local refineries and distribution networks hiding behind the rise in global petro prices.

Shale oil/gas went through a period of tight prices, which led to consolidation and major gains in efficiency - to the point that our cost of production per barrel is only marginally higher than that for Saudia Arabia. North America has very large deposits (google "Great Inland Waterway" for a reason why). We've become a net exporter. There's so much that natural gas (methane) has become a waste product - prices for that haven't fallen through the floor as both pipelines are expensive and take years - and it's not being exported as electricity due to similar delay and expense associated with building power plants and long transmission lines. But the takeaway is: we have a LOT, and that's not going to change.

The rest of the world, China in particular, is about to be fairly screwed as regards fuel availability - and they seem to have recently realized just how dependent they are on the US protecting energy shipments from the Persian Gulf. We're going to see conflict over where African oil goes. China has an impressive navy, but it’s incapable of operating more than a thousand miles from shore. Japan’s navy, on the other hand, can operate globally (and they’re an ally the US probably won’t abandon when it walks away from Bretton Woods — which could happen very quickly if Germany decides that Russian gas is more important than NATO). But I’m getting pretty far off-topic.

Back to the US: you absolutely nailed it. This is the distribution networks taking advantage. So far, the 'majors' haven't been able to compete in the shale oil 'revolution' (much different tech from what they specialize in). I think they're driven to do this because they see future issues in production / transport outside North America (where they still do make money) and they're trying to cushion the oncoming blow.

Caveat: I’m just a guy who’s read quite a bit of history and has been tracking shale oil tech and global petro for a few years now.