US Government Denies It Will Release Oil Reserves Soon

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, December 19, 2002

US Government Denies It Will Release Oil Reserves Soon

The Energy Department of the United States denied rumors Wednesday that it might release oil from the government's emergency reserve to make up for lost Venezuelan imports.

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The Energy Department of the United States denied rumors Wednesday that it might release oil from the government's emergency reserve to make up for lost Venezuelan imports.

"Currently lending or exchanging oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is not an active consideration," the department said in a statement.

But the statement did not categorically rule out using the reserve in the future and said that the department "continues to monitor the situation in Venezuela and its possible impact on US markets."

White House spokesman Ari Fleischer also said that the emergency oil stockpile is designed to be used for a severe disruption and so far that has not occurred.

"Obviously, we're going to continue to monitor the situation very closely," he said. "But at this time we do not think the release is necessary."

Venezuela's oil exports have all but stopped because of a general strike against the regime of President Hugo Chavez. The country's oil output, which had been nearly 3 million barrels a day, has dropped to 400,000 barrels.

Venezuela is a major source of oil for the United States, accounting for about 14 percent of US oil imports.

US imports of oil and refined products from Venezuela has averaged about 1.3 million barrels a day this year, peaking at 1.5 million barrels a day in September, according to the Energy Information Administration of the US Energy Department.

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