Biden’s ‘war against oil’ is pushing prices up, US shale execs say
President Biden’s “war” on fossil fuels is to blame for soaring oil prices, according to executives at American shale companies who vowed to limit drilling despite crude creeping toward $100 per barrel.
“The Biden administration is waging a war against oil that makes it far more difficult to invest in drilling that would boost production and bring down prices,” Chuck Duginski, CEO of Oklahoma-based shale driller Canvas Energy, told Financial Times over the weekend.
Duginski and other shale executives blasted the administration last week for placing restrictions on drilling on federal lands and waters.
The executives also criticized delays to drilling permits as well as comments critical of the fossil fuel industry.
“The US is blessed with amazing natural resources but we are walking away from them,” Duginski said.
Harold Hamm, founder of Continental Resources, told FT that the Biden administration was more focused on “putting us out of business” than in bringing down high gas prices.
“It’s political power,” the billionaire Hamm said.
“They believe that is what their base wants. But, I’m sorry, a lot of those people want to buy gasoline at decent prices and heat their homes.”
A White House spokesperson told The Post: “The President is committed to lowering prices at the pump for Americans and maintaining a stable and secure energy supply, while delivering on the most ambitious climate agenda in history.”
“The President is not holding back US energy production — there remain thousands of approved but unused federal permits, and US production remains strong,” the spokesperson said.
“At the same time, recent price volatility only underscores the urgency of building out sources of clean energy — as President Biden and Congressional Democrats have done — to reduce the influence of the decisions of foreign countries that don’t share our values.”
Oil prices retreated after earlier climbing $1 on Monday.
US West Texas Intermediate crude futures slipped $1.97, or 2.2%, to $88.82 a barrel on Monday — a two-week low — after losing 92 cents on Friday. Brent December crude futures fell $1.49, or 1.6%, to $90.71 a barrel.
Both benchmarks rallied nearly 30% in the third quarter on forecasts of a wide crude supply deficit in the fourth quarter after Saudi Arabia and Russia extended additional supply cuts to the end of the year.
Soaring oil prices have made Americans feel pain at the gas pump.
The average price of a gallon of regular fuel stood at $3.81 nationwide, according to the American Automobile Association.
In December of last year, gas prices stood at around $3.20 per gallon of regular fuel.
Analysts at Hamm’s company have warned that the administration’s failure to encourage more drilling could lead oil prices to soar to $150 per barrel in the coming years.
But analysts say that energy firms are showing more restraint and keeping their cash rather than reinvesting in more drilling due to expectations of fiscal discipline from Wall Street.
Oil companies are awash in cash thanks to climbing prices, but there are no plans to use the money to fund further exploration or production, experts told FT.
“I just don’t see producers getting all excited about near-term price and I think we are going to see continued [price] volatility,” Rick Muncrief, CEO of Oklahoma-based firm Devon Energy, told FT.
Muncrief said that oil companies are waiting to see whether the economy tips into a recession, thus putting a dent in demand.
“By nature, most of us will just say ‘lets stay disciplined. Let’s keep our production flat’,” said Muncrief.
The US Energy Information Administration reported that oil production averaged 12.8 million barrels a day in June, up 1 million barrels from 12 months ago, close to the levels achieved before the pandemic began in 2020.
Biden has said he considers oil production essential to keep the economy going as a bridge to a future with electric vehicles and renewable energy.
With Post wires
