WASHINGTON, D.C.,
September 25, 2014 -
In a recent interview, the Chief of the Obama Administration’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) discussed how increased American oil production is helping to prevent price spikes in the world oil market. As reported by Reuters:
“Crude oil would cost at least $150 a barrel due to supply disruptions in the Middle East and North Africa were it not for rising production in North Dakota and Texas, U.S. Energy Information Administration chief Adam Sieminski said in an interview on Wednesday…That new oil has helped the United States weather supply disruptions from Libya, Iraq and other one-time major oil producers in which political and military turmoil has sharply depressed production, Sieminski said ahead of the North Dakota Petroleum Council's annual meeting.”
This raises two important points.
- It proves, as Republicans have been saying all along, that increasing U.S. energy production is the best way to help lower prices.
- Oil prices could be EVEN LOWER if the Obama Administration would stop blocking increased American energy production on federal lands. The current increase in American oil production is happening solely on state and private lands that are largely out of reach of Obama Administration’s restrictive energy policies and regulations. Under President Obama’s leadership:
- Total federal oil production has dropped 6%
- Offshore, oil production has dropped by 13%
- Onshore, the Obama Administration has had the four lowest years of federal acres leased for energy production – going back to 1988.
- Over 87% of our offshore acreage is off-limits to oil and natural gas production.
The House of Representatives has acted to increase American energy production by approving H.R. 2, the American Energy Solutions for Lower Costs and More American Jobs Act. This bipartisan legislation would help to further lower energy prices and put Americans back to work by promoting new federal offshore and onshore American energy production.
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