(Bloomberg) -- The U.S. Energy Department said Thursday it has no plans “at this time” to tap into the nation’s oil reserves to counter rising gasoline prices.
Nymex crude oil futures reversed earlier declines to close 1.1% higher on the news. The department’s assurance follows a Financial Times report on Wednesday that Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm had raised the prospect of releases from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The report sent crude prices down as much as 2.7% that day.
Granholm was referring to already planned congressionally mandated releases when she told a forum held by the Financial Times that “all tools are on the table” after being asked how the Biden administration planned to confront surging gasoline prices, according to a statement Thursday by the Energy Department.
“DOE continues to monitor global energy market supply and will work with our agency partners to determine if and when actions are needed,” the agency said in the statement. “All tools in the tool box are always under consideration to protect the American people, but there is no plan to take action at this time.”
The agency also isn’t pursuing a ban on crude oil exports, according to a department spokesperson.
As part of a measure passed by Congress, the Energy Department has committed to sell 260 million barrels of oil by fiscal year 2027.
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