Pres. Joe Biden to Release 1 Million Oil Barrels per Day To Curb High Gas Prices

U.S. President Joe Biden has announced that he will be releasing one million oil barrels per day from the country's Strategic Petroleum Reserve for the next six months in an attempt to put a stop to high gas prices.

Americans are seeing gas prices around $5 in some parts of the country due to low domestic oil production and Russia's invasion of Ukraine, according to a CBS News report.

Biden said that he cannot answer questions regarding how much gas prices will dip or how soon. However, he estimated that prices could come down between 10 and 35 cents a gallon.

The Biden White House hoped that the release from the reserves will help bridge the gap until U.S. oil producers up their production this year.

Biden said that he is talking about a matter of days and weeks before gas prices come down, but that they could come down "fairly significantly."

The president said that the price movement is still unknown.

Biden said during his announcement that it is a "wartime bridge" to up the oil supply until production spikes later this year, adding that it is by far the largest release of oil barrels from the national reserve in United States' history.

Oil Barrels Release to Curb High Gas Prices

Al Jazeera's Mike Hanna said that the release of the stockpile could have the consequence of relieving gas prices within the United States, such as adding to the global stockpile, as well as reducing the price of oil, according to an Aljazeera News report.

Biden urged U.S. oil producers to increase production amid the Ukraine crisis, saying "enough of lavishing excessive profits on investors with payouts and buybacks."

The president also noted that U.S. oil companies have made nearly $80 billion in profit last year.

In November, the Biden administration said that it will release 50 million barrels from the strategic reserve in coordination with other countries.

The United States and 30 other countries agreed to an additional release of 60 million barrels from reserves, with half of the total coming from the U.S.

The U.S. Energy Department noted that the SPR is a complex of four sites located in the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coasts. The reserve currently holds about 586 million barrels.

Russia-Ukraine Crisis

Oil prices have reached a record high amid fears of a global economic shock from the ongoing Russia-Ukraine crisis, according to a BBC News report.

At one point, oil prices have hit $139 per barrel, which was considered to be the highest level for almost 14 years.

Meanwhile, wholesale gas prices for next-day delivery more than doubled.

The market turmoil is causing concerns that the price of many everyday items may be affected, which was already rising at its fastest rate in 30 years. It was reported that it could be pushing higher.

Russia is the world's second top crude oil producer next to Saudi Arabia. It also supplies about a third of Europe's needs.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Mary Webber

WATCH: Biden announces U.S. will release 1 million barrels of oil per day to reduce gas prices - from CBS News