Welch: Vt. Should Switch to Cheaper Fuel

By DANIEL BARLOW VERMONT PRESS BUREAU

MONTPELIER – U.S. Rep. Peter Welch wants the nation's emergency supply of oil to switch to a new kind of fuel.

Welch, a Vermont Democrat, introduced a bill Wednesday that would require the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to sell 70 million barrels of light sweet crude oil and replace it with the less expensive heavy crude oil.

His bill comes at a time when gas prices are again rising – with the average price in Vermont for regular fuel at the pump being $2.64 cents per gallon.

According to Welch's office, Wednesday was the 50th day in a row that gas prices increased across the country.

"Vermonters at the pump are experiencing déjà vu all over again," Welch said Wednesday during a telephone interview.

The Strategic Petroleum Reserve is the United States' emergency supply of oil and the largest cache in the world with a capacity to hold more than 700 million barrels.

The program began in the 1970s, following the oil embargo imposed by Arab countries.

According to its Web site, the reserve has about 722 million barrels in it right now – and about 289 million of them are what is known as sweet crude oil.

That's oil that contains a low level of sulfur and therefore is easily processed into gasoline.

Welch's bill – the Enhanced Supply and Price Reduction Act of 2009 – would begin transitioning the reserve to accept more heavy crude oil, which is often much cheaper to purchase, but also more difficult to process.

The congressman said it is not clear how much prices at the pump could drop if the reserve switched over part of its buying to the cheaper crude oil, but the move would save the taxpayers money.

He said the Governmental Accountability Office and the U.S. Department of Energy supports the change.

"We basically have two choices," Welch said. "We can continue buying the light and sweet oil on the market and cause gasoline prices to go up or we can begin buying the cheaper heavy crude oil and save the taxpayers money."

The last time Welch proposed changes in how the Strategic Petroleum Reserve works he found an unexpected ally in President Bush, who signed legislation into law halting the buying of new oil by the reserve when gas prices were at record highs during the summer of 2008.

Welch said his bill is only a temporary solution to rising gas prices, adding that he plans to introduce another bill later this week to stop what he calls speculation in the oil market – leading to higher prices at the pump.

daniel.barlow@rutland herald.com