WASHINGTON, DC - A new report by the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office (GAO) recommends that the Department of Energy (DOE) take several steps to modernize the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR).
The report, which was requested by the committee, found that when DOE conducted a Long-Term Strategic Review in 2016, it did not identify an optimal size for the SPR and its review was limited in several ways. In particular, DOE did not fully evaluate changes in market conditions, including the implications of falling net imports, record levels of crude in commercial storage, and whether the U.S. still requires a large government stockpile to respond to supply interruptions.
Specifically, GAO states, “By not examining a full range of options, DOE risks missing beneficial ways to modernize the SPR while saving taxpayer resources."
GAO recommended DOE take additional actions, including that DOE supplement the 2016 review of the SPR, ensure that the agency periodically reexamines the size of the SPR, and consider a full range of options for handling excess storage capacity.
“The Strategic Petroleum Reserve is an important energy security asset, which is why the committee has prioritized its modernization," said #SubEnergy Chairman Fred Upton (R-MI) and Ranking Member Bobby Rush (D-IL). “We will give GAO’s recommendations careful consideration as the committee considers legislative options to address the concerns raised by this report."
Background:
In December 2016, the Energy and Commerce Committee wrote a letter to GAO requesting an examination of DOE’s management of the SPR and U.S. participation in the International Energy Agency. Read the full letter here.
In November 2017, the Subcommittee on Energy held a hearing examining the federal and state response and recovery efforts from the 2017 hurricane season. Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Office of Petroleum Reserves Robert Corbin testified about the SPR and its operational challenges. Read his full testimony here.
