WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 17th September, 2019) President Donald Trump told reporters on Tuesday that he may not need to open up the US strategic petroleum reserves following the disruption to the oil market caused by drone attacks on Saudi oil facilities.
"So I don't believe I need to, but if we want to use strategic oil reserves, I would open them up," Trump said, according to a White House press pool report, when asked if he had decided whether to release the US oil reserves.
The strikes against the Saudi oil facilities knocked out 5.7 million barrels of daily crude production, representing 50 percent of Saudi Arabia's oil output and about 5 percent of global supply.
On Saturday, an Energy Department spokesperson said the United States stood ready to deploy resources from the Strategic Petroleum Oil Reserves (SPRO) to offset any potential oil market disruptions. The official also said that Energy Secretary Rick Perry directed the department to work with the International Energy Agency on options for collective global action.
The SRO holds 630 million barrels maintained for exactly this purpose, an Energy Department official said over the weekend.
