Biden announces new measures to lower oil prices

If we want lower gas prices, we should have more oil supplies and now”, President Biden said.

“This is a moment of consequence and danger for the world of pain at gas stations for American families”, he added.

President Joe Biden on Thursday accused American oil companies of enjoying record profits, while Americans are paying high prices for gasoline.

“This is not the time for record profits, it is time for actions for the benefit of your country”, President Biden said, addressing companies operating in this area.

The president is also asking Congress to impose financial fines on domestic oil and gas companies, which rent public land but do not produce. Meanwhile, Mr. Biden intends to use a federal law to encourage measures aimed at moving to the cleanest sources of energy and reducing dependence on fossil fuels. All these measures show that oil continues to be a weakness for the United States. The administration intends that with these moves, such as the introduction of oil reserves, it will exert pressure to lower the price, but President Biden has already taken this action twice without causing any significant change in oil markets.

Republican lawmakers, on the other hand, say the problem lies with the Beden administration, which is hostile to companies that have permission to use oil resources or to build new gases, such as the Keystone XL. Republican Senator Steve Daines earlier criticised the move and said that exploiting the strategic reserve, without taking steps to increase production in the country, is a desperate move that avoids the real solution: “investment in American energy production capacities”, especially those of oil and gas.

Entering a million barrels of oil a day is a way to increase supplies, will serve as a bridge until oil companies increase production.

The move, proclaimed today by President Beden, is the largest of its nature in the country's nearly 50-year history.

Oil prices dropped by 3% after the news was announced, to about $104 per barrel. A year ago, the price of a barrel was $60.

The strategic oil reserve was created after the 1973 oil crisis and used in case of natural disasters or problems related to national security.

The reserve of some 600 million barrels is stored along the coast of Texas and Louisiana.

During the announcement of this decision, President Beden spoke about recent developments in Ukraine.

President Biden said on Thursday that Russian President Vladimir Putin appears to have become self-accomplished and that he may have fired or placed some of his advisers under house arrest. /voa