Granholm said that sale, in which oil will be delivered from
April 1 to June 20, and maintenance at the reserve at two sites
will make it difficult to buy back oil this year. She said it
could take years to get the reserve back to the level it was
before the 180 million barrel sale.
(Reporting by Timothy Gardner
Editing by Marguerita Choy)
WASHINGTON, March 23 (Reuters) - It could take years for
the United States to refill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the
U.S. energy secretary told lawmakers on Thursday, after sales
directed by President Joe Biden last year pushed the stockpile
to the lowest level since the early 1980s.
"This year, it will be difficult for us to take advantage of
this low price," Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm told U.S.
representatives in a congressional hearing. "But we will
continue to look for that low price into the future because we
intend to be able to save the taxpayer dollars."
Biden administration officials have said they want to refill
the reserve, after last year's historic sale of 180 million
barrels, when the oil price consistently is around $70 a barrel.
Oil from that sale sold about $94 per barrel.
The price for benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude
futures has fallen to around $70 per barrel this week on
worries about the economy amid crises at several banks.
The energy department said last month it is moving forward
with a sale of 26 million barrels from the SPR that was mandated
by Congress in earlier years to help fund the federal budget.
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