US Looks to Buy Another 6 Million Barrels for Emergency Oil Stockpile This Year
(Reuters) — The U.S. Department of Energy on Friday said it was looking to purchase another 6 million barrels of crude oil for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as it continues to refill the stockpile following last year's record drawdown.
The DOE has announced deals to buy 6.3 million barrels of crude for the reserve in recent months, and the new solicitation would bring the total to over 12 million barrels this year.
"This purchase is in continuation of the Biden-Harris Administration’s replenishment plan and is the third solicitation that DOE has issued this year to repurchase oil for the SPR," the DOE said in a release.
"DOE will pursue additional repurchase opportunities as market conditions allow."
RELATED: US Hopes to Buy 12 Million Barrels of Oil for Reserve This Year
The DOE is seeking bids on the new solicitation by July 17. The oil would be for delivery to the Big Hill SPR site in Texas in October and November, according to the release.
The administration is slowly buying back oil for the SPR after selling more than 200 million barrels last year, including a record 180-million-barrel sale to fight high oil prices after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
RELATED: US Buys 3 Million Barrels for Oil Stockpile, Announces Plan for 3 Million More
The sales pushed levels in the reserve to the lowest since 1983.
While the United States is far less dependent on oil imports than it was in 1983, the low level in the SPR has been a focus of Republicans who say that President Joe Biden, a Democrat, has put energy security at risk.
The administration says it is making money on the sales and repurchases, because it is buying the oil back at a lower price.
The DOE said in its announcement that the average price it paid for the 6.3 million barrels it has agreed to buy so far was $72.67 per barrel – much lower than the average of about $95 per barrel that SPR crude was sold for in 2022.
Related News
Related News
- Phillips 66 to Shut LA Oil Refinery, Ending Major Gasoline Output Amid Supply Concerns
- FERC Sides with Williams in Texas-Louisiana Pipeline Dispute with Energy Transfer
- U.S. Appeals Court Blocks Kinder Morgan’s Tennessee Pipeline Permits
- ConocoPhillips Eyes Sale of $1 Billion Permian Assets Amid Marathon Acquisition
- Valero Considers All Options, Including Sale, for California Refineries Amid Regulatory Pressure
- U.S. Appeals Court Blocks Kinder Morgan’s Tennessee Pipeline Permits
- Malaysia’s Oil Exports to China Surge Amid Broader Import Decline
- U.S. LNG Export Growth Faces Uncertainty as Trump’s Tariff Proposal Looms, Analysts Say
- Marathon Oil to Lay Off Over 500 Texas Workers Ahead of ConocoPhillips Merger
- Valero Considers All Options, Including Sale, for California Refineries Amid Regulatory Pressure
Comments