The Daily Herald recently published an article entitled “shipping off the oil” and stated that “the remaining refineries are maxed out and can’t turn more crude oil into gasoline, diesel and jet fuel.” Our president released a total of around 180 million barrels from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
The reserve was created after the 1970s Arab oil embargo to give the United States a supply that could be used in an emergency. “The reserve held about 568 million barrels last week, down from more than 650 million barrels in mid 2021,” according to the U.S. Energy Department.
Biden’s tapping the reserve is a failed attempt to try to control inflation, which makes Americans poorer with an “inflation tax.” But the U.S. refineries are maxed out and our President fails to relieve Americans at the gas pumps.
According to EIA, “As a result of several U.S. refinery closures in 2020, U.S. operable atmospheric crude oil distillation capacity, the primary measure of refinery capacity in the United States, dropped 4.5% to a total of 18.1 million barrels per calendar day (b/cd) at the start of 2021.” Also, IER reports, “Another U.S. refinery is planning to close by 2024 and maybe earlier, joining six others that have already shuttered.”
It means that President Biden’s release or selling of 1 million barrels of oil each day from the United States Strategic Petroleum Reserve is only a political trick that takes our attention away from “inflation tax.”
Robert Meale
Crystal Lake
