Energy Department Looking at Heating Oil Prices

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Jan 27, 2000 - 11:30 AM Energy Department Looking at Heating Oil Prices By H. Josef Hebert

Associated Press Writer

WASHINGTON (AP) - Perplexed by the sudden, steep rise in prices, the Energy Department has begun more closely monitoring the heating oil market, Energy Secretary Bill Richardson says.

Richardson also on Wednesday said he was delaying the delivery of 5 million barrels of oil to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve in an attempt to stem oil price increases. He continues to be opposed to releasing any of the 580 million barrels of oil already in the emergency reserve in order to help lower prices.

But many economists doubt that holding off on the oil deliveries will have much impact. The United States consumes about 18 million barrels of oil a day, according to the American Petroleum Institute.

Still, said Richardson, "given today's market conditions, it simply makes sense" to postpone the deliveries.

The Clinton administration has been under pressure to act as oil prices have edged close to $30 a barrel from a low of less than $12 a barrel a year ago. Also, heating oil prices have nearly doubled in some parts of the Northeast recently.

In Massachusetts, the average retail price rose to $1.74 per gallon earlier this week, more than double what it was this time last year. And in New Hampshire, retail prices jumped 49 cents in six days, from $1.22 per gallon to $1.71.

In response, President Clinton released $44 million in emergency heating fuel funds Tuesday.

In the Republican presidential campaign debate Wednesday night, Texas Gov. George W. Bush, the GOP front-runner, said he would not dip into the strategic oil reserve to reduce oil prices, saying the stockpile is designed to help the nation weather a national emergency. Instead, he said the president must "jawbone" oil producing nations and persuade them to drop prices.

Richardson said his department would more closely monitor the heating oil markets to "make certain that ... oil product suppliers can move heating oil to those who need it most."

He said he also planned to meet next month in Boston with state officials and industry representatives to examine the reasons for the rise in heating oil prices.

Meanwhile, the president of the American Trucking Associations urged Clinton to withdraw oil already in the government reserve in Texas and Louisiana to counter soaring prices in diesel fuel.

Walter McCormick, the ATA's president, said in a letter that diesel fuel, which like heating oil is made from fuel oil distillate, jumped 47 percent the past year, including an increase of 11 cents per gallon last week.

Link to story:

http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGIUBUIKY3C.html

-- Carl Jenkins (Somewherepress@aol.com), January 27, 2000

Answers

580? monitoring? translation: gonna sit on his butt and write more spin?

-- Hokie (Hokie_@hotmail.com), January 27, 2000.

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