When the Department of Energy announced that it had successfully replenished the nation’s stockpile with the total purchased volume of 40 million barrels, the announcement had some people scratching their heads.
The Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), as the stockpile is called, contained over 630 million barrels of crude oil when President Biden took office in January 2021. Last week, it had less than 376 million barrels. How did the DOE refill the SPR with only 40 million barrels?
“I think it’s a very purposely worded, misleading press release to make it seem like it replenished the SPR. And that’s not true at all,” Robert Rapier, a chemical engineer and editor in chief of Shale Magazine, told Just the News.
The July press release announced that the DOE had awarded a contract for the purchase of 4.65 million barrels of crude oil for the SPR, bringing the total amount of oil purchased for its refilling to 43.25 million barrels.
“On top of the 140 million barrels of oil secured by working with Congress to cancel previously-mandated sales, this brings the total purchased or kept in the SPR since 2022 to 180 million barrels – the full amount sold following the unprecedented Russian war against Ukraine,” the DOE release stated.
Rapier said that across multiple outlets, including Reuters and The Hill, the announcement was widely and incorrectly reported that the DOE had managed to refill the stockpiles .
“That’s not what happened,” he said. He said what’s really happening is that the DOE is taking credit for another 140 million barrels that Congress had originally authorized, which would have drained the SPR even further. Those sales were canceled and combined with the 40 million barrels the DOE has purchased, the agency comes to a total of 180 million barrels.
“Those canceled sales wouldn’t necessarily have happened anyway, with the SPR depleted like it is. So, they’re taking credit for something that they shouldn’t be taking credit for,” Rapier explained.
Rapier explains in a Forbes article that in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the skyrocketing gasoline prices that followed, Biden began the most aggressive SPR drawdown in history.
“Politicians have used the SPR like a strategic political reserve. They tapped that as the elections got too close. Clinton did it. You know, they’ve done it before. That’s not what’s supposed to be used for. But you know, the president has a lot of discretion there,” Rapier said in an interview.
By July 2023, the SPR was down by 288 million barrels, he explains in Forbes, some of which was due to congressionally-mandated sales. Since then, the Biden administration has made a few purchases to put oil back into the stockpiles. As of July 19, the levels in the SPR had risen only 27.7 million barrels from that low point, which is only 9.6% of the oil that has been drained from it. It’s still down by over 260 million barrels from what it was when Biden took over the White House.
The 180 million barrels that the DOE is claiming refills the SPR, Rapier wrote, doesn’t include all the barrels of oil Biden drained from it. Today, the SPR remains 40% below where it was when Biden took office.
The DOE release also states that the average price that the oil was purchased to refill the SPR was $77 per barrel, which is nearly $20 per barrel lower than the $95 average sale price the DOE received in 2022 when it was being drained.
“From the beginning, this administration has put the economic and energy security of the American people first. This milestone is a proof point that when the Biden-Harris Administration makes and implements a plan, we deliver for the American people,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm in the statement.
The SPR could have been much higher when Biden took office at a great value to taxpayers. In 2020, then-President Donald Trump had proposed $3 billion in funding as part of the COVID-19 economic stimulus package to buy oil for the SPR.
Then-Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., told CNBC that Democrats had “eliminated [a] $3 billion bailout for big oil.”
Crushed under the weight of collapsing demand from the pandemic, oil prices were so low that the purchase would have been at approximately $30 per barrel.
The DOE announced Tuesday another solicitation to purchase 3.5 million barrels of oil. Assuming approximately 4 million barrels per month and no further drains on the reserve, the SPR will reach 600 million barrels by 2029.
Kevin Killough is a reporter for Just the News.
Reprinted with Permission from Just the News – By Kevin Killough
The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of AMAC or AMAC Action.
Purposely worded really means lied to.
Of course, this administration continues its policy of deception against the people with their false rhetoric of achievements. How many know of the true capacity of the SPR? Only the ones that research the truth and get it out to the masses. The game continues.
My reaction to Biden energy department’s claims that they replenished the Strategic Petroleum Reserve can be summed up in two words: PROVE IT!
Deceit. Evasion. Ineptitude: The Biden fulfillment of DEI policies.
Everything and anything to tear the fabric of this nation apart….tresonus idiots, this whole administration
Since the Biden Admn. is against our own oil being pumped and used, how was this possible?
This is propaganda (LIE), it is so interesting watching the current news, it is that Biden and Kamala are now following Trump’s plan in words, not action.
Big deception in those words, don’t just listen watch the actions!
In other words, our government has not been “transparent” with us. It never will be, unless we pull it free from the “Democrat” sewer.
I don;t believe anything the Biden administration says.
Such liars should have their mouths cleaned with lye soap. Pun intended.
There isn’t anything the Totalitarian Communist Democrat Party / Media won’t make up / misrepresent to make commie government look like it’s doing the right thing.BTW Even with all the illusionist tricks we are still down 180 million barrels of oil the num nut commie Democrat party comrades sold off.
Biden/Harris are Greenenergy idiots,if given another 4 years the United States is doomed!
Interesting math Obiden is using here. No wonder the ultra left demands that 2+2 is 5. We should all do this. Plan on spending something then not spending it and add that to your saving wow you think the bank would go for that when you apply for a loan?. I didn’t spend the 100K so now I have 300K while in actuality I only have 200K. Next to lying they are also telling you to believe this new math. Wake up people they are gaslighting all of us. You so called woke people too.
Just as Robert Rapier implies, I call BS! The SPR is still way below what it is supposed to be.
The SPR was designed to be a reserve for the military in case of war. It was NOT designed to be use by the communist demoncRATS to reduce gas prices just before an election as Xao Bai-Din is using it. It is going to take the entire ‘New Trump’ Presidency to completely refill the SPR.
They are liars and incompetent or shrewd and detrimental to our nation!
Treasonous: they should be considered as possible candidate for “The Gallows”
1213
The Obama / Biden / Harris Administration are a bunch of gaslighting mofos.
They did the very same thing the Clintons and Al Gore did.
What a bunch of grifting, self-a-grandizing frauds.
They are so full of it that their eyes are all brown! If they would have bought any oil, we would have heard all about it! I don’t believe them. It’s just a part of them making our country weaker. You know, using our oil reserve, stepping on our allies, weakening our armed forces, giving all our new weapons to the Taliban, closing the airbase so no one could easily get out, dumbing our children down and brain washing them, trying to convince people to not eat meat (making them weaker), destroying the family and it’s values. This cannot be just dementia or anything else. It’s just too much. It has to be purposeful! We need to get them and their deep state OUT.
How much longer are “We the People” going to put up with this nonsense, that is the only question?
Democrats like this are the lowest. They are lying, low life people.Absolutely disgusting is what it is. Harris is a low character type just like Biden, Obama,Gore,Clinton. USA is doomed without a turnover of a Trump/Vance win in Nov. Lord help us!
The democrat/communists are so good at lying that they can make up numbers to back up their statements. No wonder the math grades of our school children are falling off. The country’s leaders can’t do basic math without lying and the children are learning from these “leaders”.
Biden and the rest if his communist buddies are indoctrinating our teachers with their lies and having them pass them on to our children. The teachers are teaching our children that the government doesn’t lie. When are we “real Americans” going to put a stop to it? It is probably too late. Too many “young people have been indoctrinated. The younger generations think us older people are wrong and don’t know what we are telling them incorrect information! We are losing and we are not fighting back.
It is high time we older people crack down and get the schools to quit letting the teachers pass on the lies and misinformation. It is time we get our schools to go back to teaching the truth.
That’s like putting $20 in a tank that is at one quarter full! Oh, you replenished it, alright! Got it closer to HALF EMPTY!! All this administration does is lie and mislead! Joe should be forced out of office NOW, not allowed to sit there and do nothing! The security of our nation is at stake!
The Biden-Harris administration will lie and lie about its accomplishments and there will ne no blowback from the main stream media or the so called fact checkers.
An optimist, ie a dumbocrat, sees the half full SPR as full so when they add a quarter, it is overfilled. Idiots keep playing with the SPR and when we need it, we will be out of luck. Way to Go Brandon
the old man wouldn’t know, he doesn’t even know he sh** his pants.
What a Crock of chit from so-called leaders of our new socialist nation!!!
The key word here is “claims.” These same LIARS “claim” the border is closed, “claim” that inflation was 9.1% when the Clown Idiot took over, and “claim” to care for children! Slow Joe even “claims” to be a “good Catholic.” So much for CLAIMS!
Lyin’ Biden. I know I am shocked!
Just another lie from the Lyin’ King!
Leave it to Granholm to once again try to foist her imbecilic actions on the public in a pretense of doing her job.
SUUURRRRREEEE it did, and I am the king of Siam.
Prove it!
They lie. Each time the National Strategic Oil Reserves was scheduled to be filled Dictator Beijing biden canceled it on the day it was to be refilled and it wasn’t even to be fully refilled each time.
Not to mention he sold our oil to Communist China which is an act of espionage and treason by violating National Security just like his Illegal Alien Terrorist Invasion.
I realize that the article is about our oil reserves which is only a part of our issues with this administration’ So I’m making a request for anyone who believes in prayer to ask our GOD TO HELP US TO GET WHERE WE NEED TO BE, TO GUIDE AMERICANS THIS NOV. 5. JOIN IN PRAYER ACROSS OUR COUNTRY ON SEPT. 8TH EST. TIME BETWEEN 12:00 & 12:30 PM. Pray for our unity of our USA to MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN. Thank you & GOD BLESS YOU.
They hate America. They only look for their own interests what lining their pockets
It is very hard to trust any politician anymore let alone stinking Democrats.
The one good thing about the demonic rat party and its guns, the propagandia is that it save one a lot of time. Whatever they say is false. The dark side is the rigged search engines and propaganda make finding the truth, a difficult and time consuming endeavor. The truth that matters here is that had the demons not stolen the 2016 election, which, in spite of the rigged searches and main stream lies, is easily proven, America would be oil rich! The important thing to remember is that the root of all this horror is globalism. Trump didn’t get shot because he supports Israel, had an effective border policy, lowered taxes etc. He got shot because he’s a highly effective anti-globalist.
I highly doubt it!!
if it is coming from the biden/harris administration ITS A LIE
Do they ever tell the truth?
I can’t wait for Trump to get back in & things be normal again !!
Well,I looked at bidens picture at the beginning of this article and his lips weren’t moving so he wasn’t lying,but then I looked again and realized that it was a still picture.It makes me wonder what”BULL EXHAUST”the demon c rats are planning to make them seem like normal AMERICANS.I worry they will work on the people with little common sense,I really hope that they are not the majority.BUT ?.
My guess is there is as much oil in the strategic reserve as there is gold in Fort Knox…
As I recall, Biden said he would replenish the SPR when the price fell to $72/barrel. Another forecast this dementia riddled shell of a human missed. Along with being wrong on every foreign policy in the past 50 years (Robert Gates said 40 years when Joe was VP so add all the current failures this administration has wrought); Biden’s failure on oil futures cost the US tax payer $5/barrell or $216,25 Million. Wonder how much of that $216M found a path into the Biden cabal clan’s coffers.
I say “BS”. These ppl were ever truthful let alone accurate, I’ll eat my Trump flag flying out front.
Biden sold much of the reserve to China. I remember him doing it at least 2 times in the last year.
Easy enough to prove or dis-prove.
And the war whores such as President Mumbles and Closet Queen Graham continue to wheedle on about going into a war with, well this week it’s Iran, last week China.
That would go swimmingly when say, a month into such an insane conflict the US would have to request of their opponent for a few months pause in the conflict while America tries sourcing adequate petroleum supplies. This would never be allowed as the Progressives would demand we run our obsolete carrier battle groups using wind and/or solar.
And people wonder why the US has NEVER beaten a peer opponent on the field of battle. EVER!
From whom are we buying barrels of oil? Didn’t Biden shut down our oil pipeline in favor of his “green energy” initiative? Don’t we have enough untapped oil that we could supply our own needs for the next 50 years … or are these all lies, too?
Voodoo economics!
When do the lies from this corrupt and inept administration end. Unbelievable incompetence. SAD.!
More lies from the Biden administration! When they said they did something, it’s the opposite, always. The mouth opens, the lies come out.