With the flow of Libyan oil at a stalemate, the President ordered the release of 60 million barrels over the next 30 days to keep the world supply stable and gas prices from increasing.
The move was made in concert with the International Energy Agency (IEA), partly to assist countries like Italy that are highly dependent on Libyan oil. With the U.S. tapping into its strategic reserve, European nations will be able to draw more from Nigerian and Algerian crude, reports John M. Broder and Clifford Krauss.
While a press release from the Department of Energy emphasizes the worldwide benefits, it also recognizes the U.S. interest:
"As the United States enters the months of July and August, when demand is typically highest, prices remain significantly higher than they were prior to the start of the unrest in Libya."
Created in the 1970s during the Middle East oil crisis, the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is rarely tapped.
Read the full story: Global Oil Reserves Tapped in Effort to Cut Cost at Pump
Selling the Nation's Strategic Assets to Fund Road Construction
What happened to the "strategic" in the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserves? As Politico reveals, heretofore these oil reserves have only been sold when the nation's oil supply was threatened. Republicans leaders now view the SPR as a cash cow.
Federal judge strikes down DOE orders to keep Michigan power plant open past retirement date
The decision is one of the first successful legal challenges to President Trump’s “national energy emergency” ruling, which instructs federal agencies to use emergency powers to increase fossil fuel production.
Use or Misuse of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve?
Rising gasoline prices prompted President Biden to announce on October 19 that he was authorizing the release of 15 million barrels of crude oil from the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
Eastern Nebraska is running out of electricity
Data centers and electrification are straining eastern Nebraska’s grid, throttling economic development.
Study reveals best places in the U.S. for cycling, walking
New research from Streetlight Data examines bicycle and pedestrian miles per capita in the 100 largest U.S. cities by population.
Federal government nominates new FTA administrator
Mark Aesch is currently the founder and CEO of a transportation management consulting firm.
Developers reveal $10 billion stadium plan as ‘Hail Mary’ to keep Bears in Chicago
The plan would also boast a public park, high- and mid-rise buildings and a youth sports complex.
As Texas embraces carbon storage, a Black community questions the risks
Texas now issues permits for companies to store carbon dioxide underground. East Texas residents fear safety risks, and skeptics doubt the climate benefits.
FREE Course: Walkable City 1: Why Walkability?
After describing his path towards focusing on walkability as the essence of good planning, Jeff Speck marches through his five principal reasons for making more walkable places.
Reinventing Malls: Planning Alchemy—Turning Gray Fields Into Gold
The course focuses on the opportunities and imperatives that shape reinvention of mall sites.
City of Rosemead
Rutgers University, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy
One Hundred Miles
University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS)
Hunter College, City University of New York (CUNY)
The Architects Foundation
City of Cambridge
The Pocatello Development Authority
The Urban Renewal Agency of the City of Pocatello