A pair of Senate Democrats, Sens. Alex Padilla and Patty Murray, are calling for the Trump administration to abandon efforts to build a West Coast emergency oil reserve. In a letter to Energy Secretary Chris Wright, they warn that establishing a West Coast Strategic Petroleum Reserve this fiscal year would flout the law and usurp congressional authority.

Background

The plan for a West Coast Strategic Petroleum Reserve came from Sable Offshore Corp, which proposed an extension of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), a federal emergency stockpile that has been depleted by back-to-back wars involving Russia and now Iran.

According to Politico, Sable said the proposal was made “in response to the inquiries made by the Trump administration and… ongoing discussions with the Department of War for the supply of oil and gas to California.”

However, Wright confirmed to Politico that the Trump administration is in “active dialogue” about creating a West Coast emergency oil reserve.

Concerns

The Senate Democrats suggested in their letter that the West Coast project is being driven by politics, not need. The Energy Department should focus on “reinforcing existing reserves… not pursuing costly new proposals driven by political considerations,” they wrote.

Padilla and Murray added that the “needs, expansion or operation” of the federal SPR “should not be dictated by any one commercial entity.”

Tom Kloza, an independent oil analyst and advisor to Gulf Oil, told CNN that the idea of a West Coast SPR is unlikely to gain traction. “It’s a bit of a pipe dream, and it looks like a little pet project between the offshore company and the Trump administration,” Kloza said.

Original reporting: KTVZ (Central Oregon) — read the source article.