With less than six weeks until Election Day, we are hearing misguided calls to ban diesel exports as a quick fix for domestic fuel costs. A ban is the wrong answer to a real problem.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and turmoil in the Middle East continue to display what happens when refining capacity is decimated, shipping lanes are blockaded, and global energy supply chains are rattled.
Stay informed.Stay ahead.
Join Washington Examiner for unlimited access to the news, analysis, and commentary that matter most.
Already a member? Log in
Americans are feeling the pinch of the costs that come with geopolitical instability and continuous conflicts. A domestic diesel export ban would make the pain Americans are feeling at the pump worse.
As disruptions unfold across the globe and hit production and the supply chain, Texas’s oil and natural gas industry remains focused on increasing production to supply our nation and our allies with reliable energy resources. Our refiners are more than meeting America’s fuel needs and exporting the excess to our allies. A sudden prohibition on diesel exports sends a signal for refiners to reduce production, which would tighten domestic diesel supply and further impact prices.
Further, diesel and gasoline are produced together. Curtailing diesel production would have the same effect on gasoline, further driving up fuel prices. At a G20 meeting in Houston last week, U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum himself acknowledged that an export ban would not lower prices.
Instead, banning diesel exports would stifle jobs, tighten fuel supplies here at home, and put power in the hands of our nation’s adversaries by forcing our allies to turn to those countries to meet their needs.
As global disruptions to the supply chain resolve, our nation will emerge stronger and consumers better protected if our leaders resist election-season reactions that stifle America’s energy industry and ultimately hurt consumers.
OPINION: THE FED IS FIGHTING THE WRONG INFLATION WAR — AND YOU’RE COLLATERAL DAMAGE
Continuing to produce and export energy resources and investing in the infrastructure that keeps supply and security in our own hands is the way forward. Short-term political points are not worth the long-term harm a ban would inflict.
A ban today means a weaker nation tomorrow. America’s best bet is not against its own interests.
Todd Staples is president of the Texas Oil & Gas Association.