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Many people are curious about the Trump administration’s plans to refill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) that was so callously abused by whomever was making decisions in the Biden administration, which drew this national security tool down to depleted levels not seen in more than 40 years.
Created in the early ‘70s by congress and President Richard Nixon as a security response to the first Arab Oil Embargo, the SPR is intended for use during war time and other national emergencies to ensure against the collapse of the economy and that the U.S. military has fuel to power America’s war machine. It was not intended to be cut by 40% to influence a mid-term election, as whomever was in control of the Biden autopen which signed the pretend President’s name to every executive order, bill, and pardon issued during his administration decided to do.
A widespread perception exists in the public that refilling the SPR is like waving a magic wand and getting congress to appropriate billions of dollars to fund it. But the reality is that there is a whole, complex process involved after funding is secured. That process involves advance public notice, taking multiple bids for each tranche of crude to be purchased, and then properly injecting the oil back into half-filled salt caverns, some of which may have seen their integrity damaged by sitting unfilled for so long.
It is also a process that involves immense volumes of crude. Total capacity of the SPR today is 797 million barrels of oil, which equates to roughly 33 days of total U.S. consumption, but about 4 months of U.S. crude imports. The Biden people, desperate to mitigate losses in the 2022 midterm elections, chose to draw the reserve down to just 340 million barrels. Despite repeated promises over the last two years to rapidly refill the Reserve, it currently holds just 395 million barrels.
The refilling process is overseen by the Department of Energy, and Secretary Chris Wright announced the administration’s plans for executing this process this past week.
Here is an excerpt from the story at Reuters:
U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright estimates it would take $20 billion and years to accomplish President Donald Trump’s goal of refilling the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to its maximum capacity, the Energy Department said on Friday.
President Donald Trump said on his first day in office he wants to fill the reserve up to the top as part of a policy to support oil and gas.
Former President Joe Biden’s administration sold nearly 300 million barrels from the reserve including a 180-million-barrel sale in 2022 after Russia invaded Ukraine. The sales pushed the SPR to the lowest level in 40 years.
“The Energy Department has not made any budget requests to Congress at this time,” a department spokesperson said.
It will take years to refill the reserve, the spokesperson said, and a request that size to Congress is not something the department would do immediately in one request given the other budget concerns of the department, which also manages the nation’s arsenal of nuclear weapons.
…
Wright had told Bloomberg News in an interview he was seeking $20 billion which would restore holdings “just close to the top.”
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It’s important to note that these caverns can only maintain integrity through a handful of inflows and outflows before their ability to contain the crude begins to break down. So, this practice of using the SPR for crass political purposes by past presidents and several different congresses really needs to end.
It’s great to see Sec. Wright and President Trump following through on this effort to bolster this crucial national security asset. Once they get the thing refilled, this era of stupidly using the SPR as a political football needs to be brought to a full and permanent stop.
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The post Chris Wright Moves to Refill The Strategic Petroleum Reserve appeared first on Energy News Beat.
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