DOE fill of oil reserve continues to draw criticism from lawmakers

摘要

The Energy Department faced criticism on Capitol Hill last week for continuing to fill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve as oil prices continued to hover around $100 a barrel. Senator Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico, the Democratic chairman of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, has been critical of DOE's policy of filling SPR with 70,000 barrels of oil a day while prices are so high. He has signed onto a bill sponsored by committee member Byron Dorgan, a North Dakota Democrat, that would suspend filling SPR for one year unless crude oil prices dipped below $50/b.