On Thursday’s broadcast of CNN’s “New Day,” Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm called for “everyone to step up, whether it’s gas station owners, whether it’s oil companies” to increase energy supply and said there is “concern about whether there is profiteering happening at the gas station level, as well as at the oil company level.”
Granholm said, “Well, certainly, the oil companies, as they have said in their shareholder meetings, are making quite a profit at this time. And, as you noted in your introduction, it’s — this phenomenon of oil prices coming down and gas prices coming down much more slowly is called rockets and feathers, shooting up quickly, coming down very slowly. It’s been happening for a long period of time. But when the price is so high, it is really acute for people, and there is concern about whether there is profiteering happening at the gas station level, as well as at the oil company level. And I think the oil companies must be sensitive to this. I was in Houston last week for a very large energy conference, largely oil and gas, and asking the oil and gas companies to increase production right now. Because the pain at the pump is so acute. And the reason why the pain is so acute is because so much Russian oil has come off the market. So, we need for everyone to step up, whether it’s gas station owners, whether it’s oil companies, we need to all band together at this moment against Russia and increase supply so that we take away Vladimir Putin’s means of funding this war and that we become more energy independent. And at the same time, Brianna, I would say, we also have to step on the accelerator toward clean energy so that we’re not reliant on these volatile sources.”
She added that gas station owners and oil companies “took a bath” during the pandemic, “so, they pulled back on production and they pulled back on production because they had pressure from their investors. The pressure from the investors was, don’t invest in capital, invest in shareholder buyback so that we can see some increase, some better returns on our investment. And so, that happened. They have been experiencing record profits. And so, now is the time that they have got to step up, to increase production right now, and to be able to be part of the solution and not have people feel like they are being gouged at the pump. … I just think this is a moment for us, as a nation, and as industries, to step up and do your duty to increase supply.”
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