Senate approves end to oil reserve shipments

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate is directing President Bush to temporarily halt the shipment of thousands of barrels of oil a day to the government’s emergency reserve.

Both Democrats and Republicans said such shipments make no sense when oil is costing more than $120 a barrel and could better be used to add supplies to a tight market and possibly lower prices. Senators voted 97-1 Tuesday to suspend the shipments until the end of the year.


Bush has said the 70,000 barrels of oil being diverted to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is such a small amount that it does not affect energy markets. Many senators disagreed.