The Energy Department is soliciting offers of crude oil to refill Big Hill, one of the four major oil storage facilities along the Gulf Coast that make up the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. However, the 3 million barrels will make up just a sliver of the vast amounts of oil released from the SPR in recent years. Faced with spiking gas prices, President Joe Biden has aggressively drained the SPR, the world’s largest supply of emergency crude oil.
The unprecedented amounts of oil released under Biden have helped lower gas prices, but they have also shrank the government’s rainy day fund for future potential emergencies, including hurricanes, wars and other disasters. The Energy Department said the purchase of 3 million barrels of oil is part of an effort to replenish reserves at a “good deal” for taxpayers, noting that today’s prices are well below the average of about $95 from 2022.