In an ironic move (although there are many such ironies these days) Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm has written to seven large U.S. oil refiners asking them to hold back on their exports because fuel is needed in the U.S. East Coast.
“But, Granholm has done nothing to help oil companies and refineries to be able to produce more or to easily get supplies to the East Coast,” writes the Institute for Energy Research.
“Granholm writes to the 6 major refineries, ‘Given the historic level of U.S. refined product exports, I again urge you to focus in the near term on building inventories in the United States, rather than selling down current stocks and further increasing exports. It is our hope that companies will proactively address this need. If that is not the case, the administration will need to consider additional Federal requirements or other emergency measures.’ To be clear, she is threatening government actions to act against refineries if thy fail to comply with her wishes.”
The Wall Street Journal revealed her letter, which had not been publicly released.
Image is of Secretary Granholm from 2021. It is from the Department of Energy and in the public domain.