The United States sold its strategic oil reserve to China?Intersection

Author:Global Times Time:2022.07.23

Author: Geng Zhi

In the past two weeks, there has been a saying on the public opinion field in the United States, saying that under the situation of high energy prices in the United States, US President Biden did not want to alleviate the pain of American consumers. Instead, he made it. The behavior of "rebels and the enemy" sells important strategic oil reserves of the United States to China's "enemy".

Not only that, since yesterday (21st), a more exciting statement has appeared on the US network, saying that when the Republican politicians of the United States "patriotic" are preparing to prohibit Bayen from selling oil to China through legislation, Biden is located where Biden is located. The Democratic Party also collectively "rebelled the country" and blatantly voted to veto the legislation.

So, what is the truth of the matter? Did the United States really sell our strategic oil reserve to us?

Let me briefly talk about the answer:

1. The U.S. government did sell some of its own strategic oil reserve crude oil to a wholly -owned subsidiary of Sinopec Corporation. This company is called Unipec.

2. However, the U.S. government's move is not because of the so -called "betrayal of the United States", "private communication China" or "the enemy", but a market behavior of the United States to safeguard its own interests.

Next, I will try to tell you what is going on for everyone.

The cause of this incident is related to the Russian -Ukuro -conflict that started at the end of February this year. We all know that Western countries led by the United States, in order to combat Russia, which launching "special military operations" in Ukraine, it is intended to block Russia's oil from the international oil market through sanctions.

However, the US approach has also led to the shortage of crude oil supply in the international oil market, which has pushed up the price of crude oil and the price of a series of oil products -even if the US government has been blame the matter to Russia and its President Putin.

In short, in order to curb the issue of crude oil supply caused by the US sanctions and the rise in oil prices it triggered, US President Biden announced on March 31 that in addition to encouraging the increase in oil production capacity of the United States, the US government will also be approximately approximately the stock at that time. The 600 million barrels of "Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) (SPR) take out part of the inventory. In the next 6 months, the international oil market is provided by the amount of 1 million barrels per day. To stabilize international oil prices and market confidence. Calculate this about 180 million barrels of inventory.

As a result, in April this year, 16 US and foreign oil companies participated in the bidding of 30 million barrels of crude oil at the time in the United States. According to the official website of the Ministry of Energy's Fossil Energy and Carbon Management Office, 12 companies finally won this round of bidding, including United Petrochemical U.S. Branch. It is just that these 30 million barrels are actually obtained by American companies, and the United Petrochemical U.S. Branch has only received 950,000 barrels.

Later, in a follow -up report of the British Reuters in July this year, the inventory of the American "strategic oil reserve" of the American "strategic petroleum reserve" was left in the United States. Europe, Asia and China.

Speaking of which, everyone may feel a little strange. Why does the US government sell their "strategic oil reserve" to a Chinese company, and even allow their reserves to export to China? Because in everyone's impression, "Strategic Petroleum Reserve" should be for a national strategic emergency supplies. How can it be sold to foreign companies? This involves a background knowledge. Brother Geng Zhi briefly explain to everyone.

According to the official website of the Fossil Energy and Carbon Management Office of the Ministry of Energy, the United States, the "strategic oil reserve", was established on December 22, 1975. Earlier, from 1973 to 1974, the United States was sanctioned by the Arab country for supporting Israel, which supported the Arab countries. This makes the US decision maker aware that the United States must establish a strategic oil reserve mechanism to protect its energy and even national security, and can be used to alleviate the domestic supply crisis when encountering a geopolitical crisis such as petroleum embargo.

As a result, the United States made such a "strategic oil reserve" mechanism. From the perspective of public information, this mechanism usually starts in the U.S.'s oil market, which starts when emergency situations such as high oil prices or problems such as supply, but not for Americans for free, but in the way of public bidding. Selling, in order to increase the supply of oil on the market, stabilize the market and price, and then wait for the market, price or supply to restore stability, and then "copy" to supplement your inventory.

At the same time, the United States Congress also wrote a ban in the law that created the "strategic oil reserve" mechanism: prohibiting the US export of oil, unless it was specially approved by the US government. In this way, the United States can ensure that its "strategic oil reserve" will only be used in the United States. Obviously, this was also a measure of the United States at that time to protect its energy security at that time.

However, US laws do not prohibit foreign companies from participating in bidding. As long as these foreign companies have branches in the United States, they follow the export ban to ensure that the oil the bidding is used only for the United States.

However, for the decades since then, this oil export ban in the United States has become more and more "not keeping the times." Because the oil industry in the United States has ushered in the shale gas revolution brought by the "hydraulic fracture method", which has increased its domestic oil production capacity. As a result, the decision makers of the United States began to think that the United States should no longer use the protectionist method that prohibit oil exports to protect the interests of the United States. Instead Energy security in the United States, while achieving US economic and geopolitical interests at the same time. The US think tank "Brukins Society" also believes that by providing more US oil supply to the international oil market, the United States can not only stabilize the international market to lower oil prices, but also release more domestic capacity, and even allow the United States Allies and partners have gradually got rid of the energy dependence of "enemies" such as Russia and the United States, increasing the international influence of the United States.

As a result, in 2015, the US Congress ended the 40 -year oil export ban in the United States. However, the termination of this ban not only means that the United States can export oil, but also means that oil in the US "strategic oil reserve" can also be exported by buyers overseas.

But the decision makers of the United States don't seem to care about this issue. Judging from the public reports of the American media, some American experts said that after the United States became a large export country in the international petroleum market, the significance of the US "strategic oil reserve" also changed. This will also help increase the supply of international markets, produce a stable market effect, and finally benefit the United States.

Therefore, even if United Petrochemical is a all -funded subsidiary of a Chinese state -owned enterprise, whether it is participating and winning the bidding of the US "strategic oil reserve" or disposing of 950,000 barrels of crude oil, all of which are allowed by American laws and regulations to allow it Essence And this transaction is essentially made by the US government for protecting the interests of the United States.

The United States "Washington Post" and many factors of the United States also pointed out that 950,000 barrels of crude oil from the United Petrochemical Awards to obtain "strategic petroleum reserves" in the United Petrochemical Awards is legal, and the company has the right to dispose of these crude oil.

That being the case, why is there a voice of "investing in enemies" on the US network?

In fact, these voices are mainly for the Republican politicians who have Bai Deng's political opponents and conservative media that support these politicians. The reason why they attacked Biden had two reasons.

First of all, the Republican Party has attacked Biden in recent years and a habitual routine for himself. Earn support. Coupled with Biden's son, Hunter was once a shareholder of an investment company in Shanghai, China, and the company has invested in Sinopec, a superior unit of United Petrochemical, so it is impossible for the Republican Party to take the opportunity to speculate on this matter.

Even in an interview with Hunter's lawyer in an interview with the New York Times, he has already cut off the relationship with the Shanghai investment company, and the joint petrochemical bidding for the US strategic petroleum reserve inventory is only carried out according to law. In terms of flicker, he could not find North voters, but he was convinced of these hype.

Secondly, the Republican Party has been promoting the political concept of "US interests priority" in the United States in recent years, and believes that the U.S. government should prioritize the needs of their own people, rather than globalization of "not marginal". Under the situation of high oil prices in the United States, this kind of trade protectionism and populist rhetoric are not only very incarient among the Republican voters, but also confusing some middle school voters -not to mention that buyers and China also have China and China enterprise. In addition, some conservative economists have recently published articles on the media, and they have opposed the US "strategic oil reserve" to be exported abroad, saying that this cannot stabilize the market. Therefore, compared to Biden's "Tongzhong" point, this economic point is easier to bring ordinary people into the ditch.

From a more essential perspective, the Republican Party's continuous attack on this matter also reflects that the national strength of the United States can no longer support its global hegemony. Therefore, the opposite of conservative populist and global elites will become more intense in the United States politics.

However, the United States AXIOS News Network pointed out that these Republican politicians and conservative media of Bayeng or "Tongzhong" seemed to have forgotten these. When President President, the latter also sold 500,000 barrels of crude oil in the US "strategic oil reserve" inventory to another large energy state -owned enterprise in China.

However, the Republican Party did not stop there. On July 21, Beijing time, they threw another new speculation point around the matter, saying that their Republican Party originally prepared to modify the law and fully prohibit exporting the inventory of the US "strategic oil reserve" to China or any any any of them. Anthology related to the Communist Party of China, but this proposal supported by 206 Republican members in the House of Representatives in the United States was rejected by 219 Democratic members.