DAILY ON ENERGY: • Biden acts on oil ban pressures • U.S. out on a limb • U.S.-Venezuela oil talks warm up
BIDEN ACTS ON OIL BAN PRESSURES: President Joe Biden announced a ban today on all U.S. imports of Russian oil and natural gas today, seeking to impose maximum economic pressure on Russia for its violent and unprovoked invasion of Ukraine.
His remarks come as gasoline prices in the U.S. rose today to an all-time high of $4.17 a gallon, according to AAA, a 10-cent increase from the previous day and a 6-cent increase from the previous record of $4.11. While the U.S. is the world’s largest oil producer, it is also the largest oil consumer, as the AP notes––and at current levels, domestic crude will be unable to fill that void.
Democratic Sen. Ed Markey announced his own proposal to ban Russian oil imports, while House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal and Ranking Member Kevin Brady, alongside Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden and Ranking Member Mike Crapo, have been working on a deal of their own. “The White House is also considering a renewed push for its clean energy agenda as part of an attempt to move America away from its dependence on authoritarian petrostates,” The Post adds.
“We're moving forward with this ban with an understanding that many of our European allies and partners may not be in a position to join us,” Biden said today. MORE FROM BIDEN: In his White House remarks, Biden sought to highlight the blow to Russia’s economy that has been inflicted by previous rounds of sanctions, saying that such penalties have caused Russia’s economy to “crater.”
US-VENEZUELA OIL TALKS WARM UP: Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro spoke positively of talks with the United States about the prospects of his country providing oil to ease the strain on American consumers, the Financial Times reports. Press Secretary Jen Psaki said yesterday the administration was not overlooking Maduro’s transgressions in sending a delegation to talk oil.
Green finance group wants more: Carol Lee Rawn, who is senior director of transportation at green finance group Ceres, called the standards a “good first step” but said EPA should be more aggressive.