Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm speaks during the daily briefing at the White House in Washington, Monday, Jan. 23, 2023. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh) Susan Walsh/AP

Granholm dismisses fears about refilling oil reserve despite failed pilot effort

Breanne Deppisch January 23, 04:45 PMJanuary 23, 04:45 PM Video Embed

Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said Monday that her agency will be able to refill the emergency oil stockpile without trouble despite a lack of interest in an earlier purchase attempt.

“I have no concerns that we will be able to refill and replenish the SPR, [the Strategic Petroleum Reserve], and do it at a savings to taxpayers,” Granholm said at a White House press briefing.

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The Department of Energy said last month that it would purchase up to 3 million barrels of oil to begin resupplying the SPR in February, in what would have been the first effort to refill the stockpile since last year’s historic drawdown.

But it later rejected those bids, telling reporters earlier this month that they did not meet their requirements for specification or price.

On Monday, Granholm told reporters to “stay tuned” for an announcement on the next steps to begin replenishing the stockpile.

Granholm also took aim at H.R. 21, the bill introduced by House Republicans earlier this month that would limit a president’s authority to order SPR sales except in the event of a severe supply interruption.

Granholm warned Republicans in a letter last week that the bill, if passed, would undermine national security, cause crude oil shortages, and raise fuel prices nationwide. President Joe Biden would veto the bill on the off chance it did clear the Senate, she said Monday.

“He will not allow the American people to suffer because of the backwards agenda that House Republicans are advancing,” she added.

Republicans have criticized Biden for ordering last year’s sales, which they said was a politically motivated decision designed to drive down gas prices ahead of the 2022 midterm elections — rather than an effort to respond to real supply shortages caused by Russia’s war in Ukraine.

The sales have caused the nation’s stockpile to fall to its lowest point in 40 years, raising the criticism that the U.S. is more vulnerable to supply risks in the event of another emergency, such as a hurricane or other natural disaster.

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In her remarks Monday, Granholm noted that Biden’s SPR sales pushed U.S. gas prices to below where they were prior to Russia’s war in Ukraine.

The GOP-led bill “needlessly aims to weaken the Strategic Petroleum Reserve’s usefulness as a tool to ensure energy security in America,” she added.

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