The Trump administration is actively considering tapping into the nation’s emergency supply of crude oil as political pressure grows to rein in rising gasoline prices before congressional elections in November, two people familiar with the situation told Bloomberg.
No decision has been made to release crude from the 660-million-barrel stockpile, known as the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, but options under review range from a 5-million-barrel test sale to release of 30 million barrels, said the people, who requested anonymity to discuss non-public deliberations.
An even larger release is possible if were to be coordinated with other nations, Bloomberg said.
The national unleaded average gasoline price rose to $2.89 Friday, up 63 cents or 28 percent from a year ago, according to data from AAA. The US gasoline price average is expected to range between $2.85 per gallon and $3.05 per gallon through Labor Day, according to the group.
And as average prices close in on $3 a gallon -- they’re well above that in many locations -- Trump hasn’t been shy about voicing his displeasure.
“Oil prices are too high, OPEC is at it again. Not good!” he said on Twitter in June. He also said: “REDUCE PRICING NOW!”
Meanwhile, a senior Iranian oil official urged Trump not to use the nation’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve to push prices lower, and instead drop sanctions on Iran’s crude exports.
“My advice to you, Mr. President, is to avoid touching the SPR - to cool down and give up sanctioning Iranian oil," Hossein Kazempour Ardebili, Iran’s representative to OPEC, said by email to Bloomberg.
