In a recent interview, Canary CEO Dan Eberhart suggested that President Biden missed out on a “golden window” to replenish the severely depleted Strategic Petroleum reserves when oil prices were still reasonably low.
OPEC announced on April 2 that it would further cut oil output by around 1.16 million barrels a day from May until the end of 2023, bringing the total pledged cuts to 3.66 million barrels per day or 3.7 percent of global demand.
On April 3, oil prices increased by 6 percent.
On Tuesday, Eberhart told Fox Business that for President Biden, “the train has left the station” now that oil is unlikely to drop below $80 a barrel anytime in the foreseeable future.
Eberhart said missing that window of opportunity to replenish the SPR is “really bad” for US national security and consumers, adding that the Biden administration has left the United States “completely unprepared.”
He said the White House had an “excellent opportunity” to replenish the SPR when oil prices were “somewhat low,” but instead, “it did nothing.” He said it is inevitable that the price of oil by the end of 2023 will be at least $100 a barrel or higher.
In early 2020, then-President Donald Trump wanted to fill the SPR when oil prices were $24 a barrel. However, Democrats in Congress blocked the move, with Chuck Schumer calling it a “bailout for big oil.”
After OPEC announced its latest output reduction, analysts warned that the additional cuts will cause gas prices to rise again in the US and elsewhere, further complicating efforts by central banks to rein in inflation, CBS News reported.
Additionally, higher oil prices will also help OPEC member Russia at a time when it needs additional money to continue its war in Ukraine.
Oil prices, which were below $80 a barrel in March had climbed to $86 by Friday.
