Another 3 million bbl of crude oil sought for Strategic Petroleum Reserve
The US Department of Energy (DOE) is seeking offers to supply about 3 million bbl of sour crude oil to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) for delivery in September at its Big Hill site in southeastern Texas. DOE issued a solicitation June 9 for the oil, with a deadline of June 20 to receive offers, which must be made by email. The minimum offer is 300,000 bbl and the maximum 3 million bbl, and the oil must be produced in the US.
DOE also June 9 announced the results of its last round of offers, which were solicited in May and drew 30 offers from 10 companies. The winners were Atlantic Trading & Marketing Inc. (1 million bbl), Exxon Mobil Corp. (900,000 bbl), Gunvor USA LLC (600,000 bbl), Macquarie Commodities Trading US LLC (300,000 bbl), and Sunoco Partners Marketing & Terminals LP (300,000 bbl).
The results from the May solicitation were 3.1 million bbl, slightly above the target volume, at an average purchase price of $73/bbl, DOE said. The department noted that the purchase price was “lower than the average of about $95 per barrel that SPR crude was sold for in 2022, securing a good deal for taxpayers.”
The 2022 sales from the SPR occurred in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and an oil price spike. The Treasury Department has estimated the SPR sales in 2022, combined with allies’ drawdowns of reserves, helped moderate US gasoline prices by “up to roughly 40 cents per gallon” (OGJ Online, May 17, 2023).
The Big Hill SPR site, in Jefferson County, Tex., south of Beaumont, can receive up to 225,000 b/d of crude.