Ending ban on US crude exports would boost shipping, says congressman
TEXAS Republican Congressman Michael McCaul has introduced a bill to end the ban on US crude oil exports, thus creating a new tanker trade and providing an alternate for Europe, now worried about energy supplies from Russia.
The Crude Oil Export Act would repeal a 40-year-old ban on crude oil exports to allow the US to be competitive with other oil exporting nations, now that many abundant sources of shale oil has been found in North America.
The bill would allow the US president to impose a ban on the exports for 90 days during a national emergency unless voted down by Congress.
Said Mr McCaul: "Lifting the outdated ban will result in more production, create new jobs and boost America's energy security while providing countries like Ukraine with a dependable supply alternatives."
Mr McCaul argues that the 1975 Energy Policy and Conservation Act, which made the export of crude oil illegal, has outlived its usefulness. He also said Russia depends on artificially high oil prices to sustain its economy.
The booming product tanker trade out of the US Gulf, bolsters estimates that it will take 100 LNG tankers to service the export flow and it is expected that US crude exports will need extra shipping capacity too.
