U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright says Washington will announce steps within days to help refiners produce more fuel, as the Trump administration works to bring down gasoline prices that spiked during the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. Wright met refiners in Midland, Texas, on Monday and said boosting output at home and abroad is key to lowering pump prices.
Wright meets refiners in the Permian Basin
U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said on Monday that the government will unveil measures within days to help refiners boost fuel output, as President Donald Trump tries to rein in gasoline prices that spiked during the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. Wright made the comment to reporters at an oil rig site operated by ExxonMobil.
Domestic refineries are already running at strong rates as high fuel prices have lifted margins, though some Middle East refineries have been turned down. Wright met with refiners on Monday in Midland, Texas, in the heart of the Permian Basin, to discuss what the government can do to help them further ramp up throughput. He said increasing refinery output in the United States and elsewhere was key to lowering gasoline prices.
Gasoline prices weigh on midterms
Persistently high pump prices above $4.00 a gallon are a risk for Trump's Republican party as it campaigns to retain narrow majorities in Congress during the November midterm elections. The average U.S. price for regular gasoline is more than $4.06 a gallon, according to motorist group AAA — up more than $1 a gallon from a year ago, or nearly 30% higher.
Trump told a political rally in New York on Friday that paying a bit more for gasoline was worth it to keep Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, one of the reasons he has cited for the war.
Iran's oil exports and the Strait of Hormuz
Wright later told Fox News that 30 ships transited the Strait of Hormuz on both Saturday and Sunday, adding that Iran cannot export any crude oil right now. Asked whether traffic through the strait could reach pre-war levels of 20 million barrels per day, Wright said he did not know the future but expected escorting of traffic to keep improving.
Asked whether Trump has latitude to wait Iran out as sanctions and the oil embargo through the strait tighten, Wright said, according to Reuters: "I think he does. The president is playing the long game."
Source: Investing.com
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