Trump Releases 315,000 Barrels of Heating Oil as Maine Senate Race Tightens
Updated
Updated · POLITICO · Oct 21
Trump Releases 315,000 Barrels of Heating Oil as Maine Senate Race Tightens
3 articles · Updated · POLITICO · Oct 21
Summary
Up to 315,000 barrels from the Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve will be offered in an exchange aimed at easing winter fuel costs, with borrowers required to return the oil plus a premium before next heating season.
$6.14 a gallon is the latest U.S. average for heating oil, more than double last year’s $2.60; in New England, the average stands at $6.08 as winter approaches.
Maine sits at the center of the move because heating oil use is concentrated in the Northeast, and Sen. Susan Collins and independent Sen. Angus King had both pressed for a reserve release.
Collins cast the action as proof she can deliver for Mainers, while Democratic challenger Troy Jackson argued the administration’s Iran war drove the price spike and said she acted only two weeks before Election Day.
The administration called the release a temporary response to supply disruption, while Energy Secretary Chris Wright renewed his push for a new natural gas pipeline to reduce the region’s reliance on heating oil.