Biden Unveils Plan For Oil Firms To Raise Output As He Continues To Tap Reserves

President Joe Biden unveiled a proposal that he believes would provide a "return for taxpayers" amid pressures from the midterm elections, gas prices, inflation, and economic instability. This plan includes a long delayed appeal for oil firms to raise output.

In order to replenish the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), Biden is releasing 15 million additional barrels of oil at this time. He is also urging American oil corporations to increase output and is guaranteeing them a price of $70 per barrel for the barrels they sell back to the government.

During a news conference on Wednesday, Biden said, "You're sitting on historic earnings and we're providing you more confidence, so you can move now to enhance oil production now."

Biden claimed that oil firms may increase oil production today "with the guarantee" that they can sell their oil back to the U.S. government for $70 in the future, despite his party's, his voters', and environmentalists' commitments.

The average price of oil since March has been above $90 per barrel, which Biden described as "a good price for corporations, a good price for the taxpayers, and it's vital to our national security."