The Department of Energy (DOE) announced Wednesday that it has advanced a plan to acquire one million barrels of crude oil to begin the process of replenishing the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR). The move comes after the reserve’s inventory fell to its lowest level since 1983 during the previous administration.
The DOE awarded contracts following its October 21 solicitation, selecting “the most competitive bids that met all quality and specification requirements,” according to the agency’s statement. The contracted oil is scheduled for delivery to the Bryan Mound site between December 2025 and January 2026.
DOE Secretary Chris Wright stated the effort aligns with a promise made by President Donald Trump to “protect America’s energy security by refilling and managing the Strategic Petroleum Reserve more responsibly.”
“Awarding these contracts marks another step in the important process of refilling this national security asset,” Secretary Wright said Wednesday. “While this process won’t be complete overnight, these actions are an important step in strengthening our energy security and reversing the costly and irresponsible energy policies of the last administration.”
The SPR was significantly depleted in 2022 when the Biden administration accessed the reserve, executing a 180-million-barrel drawdown ahead of the midterm elections as the nation grappled with surging gas prices. Though the Biden administration later attempted to restock the reserve near the end of its term, the SPR’s inventory remained at historically low levels.
The DOE also criticized the previous administration’s actions, saying the 2022 drawdown “severely weakened” the SPR, “incurred nearly $280 million in costs, delayed critical infrastructure maintenance and put unprecedented wear and tear on storage and injection facilities.”
Currently, the SPR holds just over 400 million barrels, a significant reduction from its total capacity of approximately 700 million barrels. The one million barrel acquisition marks the first step in a broader strategy to restore the reserve’s capacity and bolster the nation’s energy security buffer.
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