PROVIDENCE, RI -- Today, after President Biden announced plans to release 50 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which stores roughly 620 million barrels of crude oil in underground caverns, U.S. Senator Jack Reed who has been calling on the Biden Administration to take this step and additional action to help lower gas prices, issued the following statement:

“Rising fuel prices caused by a perfect storm of global events and the pandemic have placed an undue burden on Americans.  President Biden is taking meaningful, coordinated action to deliver a real measure of relief at the pump. 

“I urged President Biden to tap into the Strategic Petroleum Reserve at this critical moment to help reduce the price of fuel for American families and businesses.  I support President Biden’s responsible, effective, and coordinated action here.  He is working with other countries to help bring down the price of oil and ease the supply disruption that has been distorted by the pandemic and OPEC.

“Given the global nature of the oil market, there is no one-off solution here.  I am glad President Biden is taking additional steps, including asking the Federal Trade Commission to look under the hood of Big Oil to investigate anti-competitive behavior, as well as pushing a clean energy agenda that will reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.  But I believe we need to go further, including considering suspending the export of domestically produced oil.”

“Dipping into the Strategic Petroleum Reserve now should cause a dip in prices for consumers in the near term.  And we must continue to pursue a smart, effective long-term strategy to meet America’s energy needs and ensure working Americans aren’t being unfairly squeezed by Big Oil or other special interests.”