As domestic prices for petroleum continue to go down, experts throughout the U.S. petroleum industry are suggesting lifting the restrictions surrounding oil exports that continue to be in place despite the huge supply. The disparity of prices between markets, as well as the growing supply of stored, unrefined crude with no place to go, only adds to the pressure of changing the petroleum export policies of the United States.
Without it, industry leaders say, the expansion of domestic oil production—particularly the nascent shale oil industry that had hitherto driven the boom in supply—will come to a standstill or even be reversed. Such a situation could lead to future supply problems as domestic production would fail yet again to meet domestic demand and make the nation heavily dependent on imported oil.
There are segments of the industry, however, such as the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers, who argue against lifting the trade restrictions on petroleum exports as a stopgap measure for a temporary hiccup in oil's market cycle. Those against the ban point out that its supporters are mainly refineries, which benefit from low prices and profit from the still-high prices of petroleum products like gasoline.
Lifting the restrictions on petroleum exports will allow oil industry players to tap into the growing international petroleum markets, which currently have better overall prices in spite of the drop in the price of the commodity in the global markets. This will not only increase the domestic price of oil, relieving the petroleum industry somewhat, but also reduce the price of gasoline worldwide, something that has profound and widespread economic benefits in the country and across the globe.
Headed by Brian Alfaro, Primera Energy, LLC operates on the Eagle Ford Shale in Southern Texas. Visit this website for more on the company and its operations.
