據路透社4月1日報道，據兩位知情人士透露，美國計劃出租戰略石油儲備空間為能源公司提供石油存儲設施,此前為緊急儲備購買數百萬桶石油的計劃因資金短缺而被取消。

隨著需求銳減，原油供過于求的情況可能會令商業儲油設施不堪重負，這將進一步推高全球能源儲備空間的價格，而戰略石油儲備空間出租計劃可能有助于美國應對這一危機。最初的計劃是讓美國能源部(DOE)使用聯邦資金從國內石油生產商手中購買原油，但是國會并沒有批準購買的資金，這迫使能源部上周取消了這項提議。

戰略石油儲備空間出租計劃是最初計劃的一個調整。修訂后的計劃將幫助交易員和其他石油廠商在危機結束后出售儲存的原油，以渡過油價急劇下跌的難關。

俄克拉何馬州庫欣市是美國主要的商業石油倉儲中心，但很快存儲空間就被填滿。

美國戰略石油儲備有7700萬桶的閑置產能，略低于該國四天的使用量。目前，在德克薩斯州和路易斯安那州海岸的鹽穴中儲存著大約6.35億桶石油。目前尚不清楚美國能源部是否曾將鹽穴中的存儲空間出租給私營公司。

3月份美國原油期貨下跌54%，創下該基準指數歷史上最大的月度跌幅。本周早些時候，美國最重要品級原油現貨價格約為每桶10美元，為20多年來的最低水平。

鄒勤 摘譯自 路透社

原文如下：

U.S. aims to lease space in emergency oil stockpile, after buying plan canceled - sources

The Trump administration plans to lease out space for energy companies to store oil in the nation’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve, after a previous effort to buy millions of barrels for the emergency stockpile was canceled over a lack of funding, according to two people briefed on the matter.

The new plan could help the United States deal with a growing glut of crude oil that risks overwhelming commercial storage tanks and sending world energy prices deeper into a tailspin as the coronavirus pandemic slashes demand for fuel. It could be announced as soon as Wednesday, the sources said.

The plan is a change of tack from the initial scheme, which would have had the Department of Energy (DOE) purchase crude from domestic drilers using federal funds.

But Congress did not approve funds for the buys, forcing the Energy Department last week to cancel the proposal.

The revised plan would help traders and others as they try to ride out a precipitous drop in the price of oil by storing crude for sale later once the crisis is over.

The country’s main commercial storage hub in Cushing, Oklahoma is quickly filling up.

The Strategic Petroleum Reserve has 77 million barrels of free capacity, a little less than the country uses in four days. It currently holds about 635 million barrels of oil in salt caverns on the Texas and Louisiana coasts.

It was not clear if the DOE has ever before leased space in the caverns to private companies.

U.S. oil futures lost 54% in March, the biggest monthly percentage decline in the benchmark’s history. The country’s flagship physical crude oil grade traded at about $10 a barrel, the lowest in more than two decades, earlier this week.