On Wednesday (September 28) morning, President Joe Biden warned U.S. oil and gas companies against using Hurricane Ian as an excuse to hike prices.
Speaking at the White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health in the morning, Biden said, “Do not use this as an excuse to raise gasoline prices or gouge the American people,” noting, “The price of oil has stayed relatively low and kept going down; the price of gas should be going down as well.”
Biden then cited estimates from White House experts that suggest the hurricane shouldn’t disrupt the production of more than 190,000 barrels of oil per day, which is only about 2 percent of the nation’s daily oil production.
“This small, temporary storm impact on oil production provides no excuse for price increases at the pump,” Biden explained, vowing to investigate any attempts at price gouging if prices don’t reflect that.
Patrick De Haan of GasBuddy showed through an analysis that about 20 percent of gas stations in Tampa, where the fall is predicted to hit, are without fuel.
However, De Haan pointed out that the rest of the Sunshine State remains largely unaffected.
So far, hurricane Ian hasn’t affected refineries in the Gulf of Mexico, sparing Florida’s supply. But, should Ian turn west, it could affect refineries in Louisiana and Texas.
Wednesday’s remarks aren’t the first time Biden has called out energy companies. Instead, Biden has frequently accused the oil and gas industry of price gouging, a narrative that kicked into gear in the Spring when gas prices hit record highs.
