The administration of US President Joe Biden is considering releasing 1 million barrels of oil a day for months from its Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), three informed sources in Washington said. The aim is to lower fuel prices.
Mr Biden will refer to his administration ‘s actions on energy later today, the White House said, as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and sanctions on Moscow are among the key factors pushing up oil prices.
Russia is one of the world’s largest oil producers: it contributes 10% of the world’s supply. But sanctions and investor reluctance are expected to reduce the amount of Russian oil on the market by about three million barrels a day from April, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
The sources did not specify for how long it is planned to sell one million barrels of crude a day on the market from the strategic stock.
On Friday, a U.S. source said the Biden administration was considering releasing new quantities of crude oil from the SPR to help stabilize the global energy market. If it goes ahead, it may be some of the 30 million barrels it released earlier this month.
High gas prices are hurting Biden and Democrats, who are seeking to retain control of Congress in the November election.
The White House said Mr Biden would make a statement at 1:30 p.m. (Washington time; 8:30 p.m. Greek time) about his government’s “moves to mitigate the impact of rising energy prices because of (Russian President Vladimir Putin) “Putin and reduce the prices of gasoline in the pumps for American families.” The press release did not contain any details.
The International Energy Agency member states agreed to dispose of more than 60 million barrels of crude from their strategic reserves earlier in March. Half of this amount came from the SPR.
The Biden government is still considering temporarily lifting restrictions on summer sales of gasoline-ethanol blends to reduce fuel prices, according to three sources. Using more ethanol could help lower prices as this fuel, produced from corn, is currently cheaper than gasoline.
SOURCE: AMPE
Source: Capital
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