Trump Set to Meet with Oil Refiners Amid Record Gas Prices
US President Donald Trump is set to meet oil refining executives as he confronts persistently high gasoline prices. The meeting, planned for September 1, will give Trump an opportunity to hear directly from industry executives about market dynamics and what can be done to lower gasoline prices.
The invited companies span the refining spectrum, from large, integrated oil companies to smaller, independent fuel makers. They include Marathon Petroleum Corp., Delek US Holdings Inc., Chevron Corp., PBF Energy Inc., and Valero Energy Corp.
Fuel prices are at the highest seasonal level ever with gasoline now priced at more than $4 a gallon and diesel fetching almost $6 a gallon on average nationwide, according to the American Automobile Association. Trump has already issued a presidential determination invoking the Defense Production Act and allowing the potential use of federal funds to support refining and other energy projects in the name of national security.
The session is expected to provide an opening for some refiners to raise their concerns with biofuel-blending quotas the administration has set under the US Renewable Fuel Standard. The Environmental Protection Agency said it would decide by the end of the month whether to exempt some small refineries from those annual quotas compelling the use of corn-based ethanol and soy-based biodiesel.