Tapping US heatoil reserve would lower prices – EIA

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Releasing emergency supplies from the U.S. Northeast Heating Oil Reserve would have a short-term effect on lowering record retail heating oil prices, the head of the federal Energy Information Administration said Tuesday.

“I’m sure it would have a short-term impact” on prices in the Northeast, the world’s biggest heating oil market, Guy Caruso told reporters on tapping the 2-million-barrel reserve.



Caruso said he was not aware of any government plans to release supplies from the emergency stockpile.

Heating oil distributors said last week they were planning to ask the Bush administration to release heating oil supplies from the stockpile to ease a cash crunch this winter caused by delayed payments from low-income customers and high prices for their own fuel inventory.

Reuters