據能源世界網5月14日華盛頓報道，美國能源部周三表示，將購買多達100萬桶低硫原油，用于應急石油儲備。此舉旨在幫助那些因疫情抑制石油需求而陷入困境的生產商。

此舉是在該部門取消了為戰略石油儲備購買多達3000萬桶的最初計劃之后，美國國會未能為其提供資金。

今年3月，能源部試圖尋找資金購買總計7700萬桶石油，這將使該儲備達到約7.14億桶。

該部門在一份新聞稿中稱，購買多達100萬桶原油"將是對SPR可獲得的現貨原油狀況的測試，而不是對金融市場交易WTI NYMEX期貨合約的測試。該部門表示，將從國內中小型生產商購買石油。

能源部沒有立即回應有關如果測試產生令人滿意的結果是否還會再采購的問題。

在取消了3,000萬桶的購買之后，能源部制定了一項計劃，要求公司租用空間在SPR中儲存一些石油。能源部在4月底表示，包括雪佛龍公司和埃克森美孚公司在內的9家公司已同意租用儲存2300萬桶原油的空間。

根據美國能源部網站顯示，到目前為止，根據租賃計劃，截至4月底和5月，已經向SPR輸送了約480萬桶石油。

郝芬 譯自 能源世界網

原文如下：

U.S. to buy up to 1 million barrels of oil for emergency reserve

he US Energy Department said on Wednesday it will buy up to 1 million barrels of sweet crude for the government's emergency petroleum reserve as part an effort to help producers struggling as the coronavirus strangles oil demand.

The move came after the department canceled an initial plan to buy up to 30 million barrels for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, or SPR, after Congress failed to fund it as some lawmakers complained it would help oil companies during the coronavirus pandemic.

In March the department tried to find funding to purchase a total of 77 million barrels, which would have brought the reserve to its capacity of about 714 million barrels.

The purchase of up to 1 million barrels "will serve as a test of the current conditions of physical crude oil available to the SPR as opposed to the financial market trading WTI NYMEX futures contracts," the department said in a release. The department will purchase the oil from small to midsize domestic producers, it said.

The Energy Department did not immediately respond to a question about whether there would be further purchases if the test yielded favorable results.

After it canceled the 30 million barrel purchase, the Energy Department devised a plan for companies to rent space to store some oil in the SPR. In late April, the Energy Department said nine companies including Chevron Corp and Exxon Mobil Corp had agreed to rent space to store 23 million barrels of crude.

About 4.8 million barrels of oil have been delivered so far to the SPR in late April and in May under the leasing program, the Energy Department website showed.