ATLANTA — With high gas prices, many online are wondering if anything could have been done to prevent this.
Social media is filled with claims that the United States was at one time energy independent. The posts claim that due to policy changes, our country is now relying on imports from other countries.
Is that true? Our team went to the experts to verify.
THE QUESTION
Has U.S. recently been energy independent?
OUR SOURCES
THE ANSWER
No, the United States has not been energy independent for the last 70 years.
WHAT WE KNOW
According to the U-S Energy Information Administration, production of petroleum in the United States exceeded demand in 2020.
At the same time, the U.S. imported 8.5 million barrels of petroleum a day from other countries including Russia.
Energy expert Mark Finley said we’ve reduced our dependence on imports but some parts of the country still rely on it.
"Where the oil is produced and where the gasoline and diesel fuel is refined doesn't always match up with where it's consumed," he said. "In some cases, it's cheaper to import it; for example, for the U.S. East Coast to import gasoline from Europe and refineries there."
Marty Parker, supply chain expert and lecturer at the University of Georgia, said petroleum imports helped the U.S. through supply issues here including last year’s temporary shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline.
"It makes sense to have relationships with multiple countries that buy and sell these products," he said. "Not being completely dependent on any one source of energy creates resilience which makes us less vulnerable to 'shocks.'"
Gulf Coast refineries are designed to process the kind of crude that comes mostly from foreign soil.
"I think that there's good reason for the states to have a robust domestic industry," Parker said. "But we are not and we shouldn't aspire to be independent from the rest of the world."
Even as our supply and exports of petroleum increased, the U.S. never stopped importing it.
For the last 70 years, the U.S. has not been energy independent. That claim is false.
See a claim or have a question you'd like our team to Verify? Email us at verify@11alive.com.
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