Washington,
Sep 21, 2005 -
Three weeks ago, Hurricane Katrina shut down nine oil refineries as it roared into the Gulf Coast, disrupting over twelve percent of our nation’s refining capacity. That interruption in our ability to refine crude oil – not a shortage of crude oil itself – was a significant driving force behind the recent spike in gas prices. Now prices are rising again as Hurricane Rita threatens the Gulf region. In response, House Republican Policy Chairman John Shadegg, along with 32 cosponsors, today introduced The Fuel Supply Improvement Act of 2005 to address the nation’s critical shortage in refinery capacity. “There is no margin for error in our energy supply,” Shadegg said. “We were running at 97 percent capacity for refining oil before Katrina hit. We have not built a new refinery in this country in 29 years. America desperately needs more refineries to convert crude oil into the fuels that power our society.” The legislation will expedite and encourage construction of new and expanded refineries by streamlining permitting processes and providing risk insurance similar to that available to the nuclear energy industry to a limited number of new refineries. “Of course America needs more alternative sources of energy,” Shadegg said. “But in the short term we must add refining capacity, or we will continue to face extreme price fluctuations that hurt American families and businesses.”
