Debate fueled as Biden taps key petroleum stockpile

Experts testify

The issue of high gasoline prices, like many in US society, reflects the nation's political divide. On one side are proponents of cheap fuel and gasoline-powered vehicles. On the other, are those looking to fight climate change while pushing for hybrid and electric vehicles to reduce carbon emissions.

The Sierra Club, a prominent environmental advocacy group founded in 1892, said in a statement on March 31, "The current spike in gas prices and supply chain shortages are reminders that the only way to truly achieve energy security is to rapidly transition away from fossil fuels and invest at the size and scale necessary to power the country through clean, renewable energy.

"As President Biden is taking steps to ease everyday Americans' energy burden in the short term, Congress must move swiftly to meet the moment."

On April 6, top executives from BP America, Chevron, Devon Energy, ExxonMobil, Pioneer Natural Resources and Shell USA testified about surging gasoline prices to the House Energy and Commerce Committee via video link.

Diana DeGette, a Colorado Democrat and chair of the Energy and Commerce subcommittee on oversight and investigations, said, "These prices are constraining our constituents' budgets and patience."

Michael Wirth, chairman and CEO of Chevron, replied: "I want to be absolutely clear. We do not control the market price of crude oil or natural gas, nor of refined products like gasoline and diesel fuel, and we have no tolerance for price-gouging."

Committee chairman Frank Pallone Jr., a New Jersey Democrat, said: "At a time of record profits, Big Oil is refusing to increase production to provide the American people some much-needed relief at the gas pump. Instead, they're buying back their stock at an estimated cost of about $40 billion this year."

Cathy McMorris Rodgers, a Washington state Republican, said Democrats want to keep gasoline prices artificially high to gain more support for their climate agenda.

"Democrats have never made gas prices a priority. Why? Because they want to usher in a green revolution. If you're wondering what life would look like under the Green New Deal, you're getting a small taste of it now," she said.

The White House in its March 31 statement also accused energy companies of not using the land that they lease from the federal government for energy production.

The statement said: "Right now, the oil and gas industry is sitting on more than 12 million acres (4.85 million hectares) of non-producing federal land with 9,000 unused but already-approved permits for production. Today, President Biden is calling on Congress to make companies pay fees on wells from their leases that they haven't used in years and on acres of public lands that they are hoarding without producing."

Replying to the allegation, Sommers, head of API, said: "The administration once again has a fundamental misunderstanding of how leases work. The percentage of producing leases is at a two-decade high, with nearly two out of three leases producing natural gas and oil.

"With nearly 5,000 permits awaiting approval from the administration and thousands more tied up in litigation, we stand ready to work with the administration to expand domestic production and ensure the US and our allies have access to the affordable, reliable energy that's needed not only today but for years to come."

An analysis by the API found that in the first 14 months of Barack Obama's administration, the US Department of the Interior held 47 federal lease sales, while the Biden administration has held one such sale since January last year, which was later invalidated.