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US Awards Contracts for First 30Mln Barrels of Emergency Oil Reserve Sale

© US Department of EnergyUS Strategic Petroleum Reserve storage tanks at the Sunoco Terminal near Nederland, Texas
US Strategic Petroleum Reserve storage tanks at the Sunoco Terminal near Nederland, Texas - Sputnik International, 1920, 21.04.2022
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WASHINGTON (Sputnik) - The Biden administration said it has contracted the first 30 million barrels of oil in the 180-million barrel sale it was making from the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) to tamp down pump prices of fuel.
"The Department of Energy… has awarded contracts for all of the initial thirty million barrels it put up for sale as part of the emergency release of 1 million barrels per day in oil for the next 6 months," the White House said in a statement on Thursday. "This is just the latest result of the Biden Administration’s efforts to do everything in our power to lower energy costs for American families, including accelerating the deployment of cost-saving clean energy with the urgency this moment requires."
Last week, Biden announced that the administration would allow the sale of E15, a gasoline blend that contained 15% ethanol versus the federally-mandated 10% requirement in the E10 gasoline, as a means to reduce usage of crude oil that could lead to lower pump prices of fuel.
"The Administration continues to work toward real energy independence by rapidly reducing our dependence on oil - including this week’s announcement of critical investments to deploy clean energy," the White House said, referring to the higher use of ethanol, which is typically made of corn.
Aside from the 180 million barrels coming out from the SPR, another 60 million barrels are due to be released from the reserves of other member countries in the International Energy Agency to alleviate the tight supply situation and high prices for oil.
Crude oil’s global benchmark Brent hit 14-year peaks of almost $140 a barrel in March while pump prices of US gasoline peaked at an all-time high of above $4.33 per gallon, after sanctions imposed by Western nations against Russia over the conflict in Ukraine. While prices have come off their highs, Brent still trades at above $100 a barrel and gasoline averages around $4 a gallon, keeping US inflation pressure at its highest in 40 years. This has resulted in Biden branding the higher cost of living experienced by Americans as "Putin’s Price Hikes".
In this Nov. 6, 2013 file photo, a Whiting Petroleum Co. pumpjack pulls crude oil from the Bakken region of the Northern Plains near Bainville, Mont. U.S. - Sputnik International, 1920, 20.04.2022
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However, gas prices have been on the rise since the day Biden took office, and were on a steep climb well before Russia's operation in Ukraine. By the end of Biden's first year in office, the price of gas had risen by more than 40 percent, from a monthly average of $2.42 per barrel to $3.41, according to EIA data.
Prior to the decision to sell 180 million barrels from the SPR, the Biden administration had ordered the release of 30 million barrels from the reserve in March and another 50 million barrels in November in coordination with other oil consuming countries that included China, Japan, India, South Korea and Britain.
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