On the same day that President Joe Biden spoke about the United States’ and the world’s “amazing shift” away from fossil fuels, gas prices set another new high.
The new nationwide average is just about $4.60 per gallon, which is the highest level ever recorded by the AAA’s gas price tracker.
All 50 states have a median gas price above $4. During an interview with a local Fox affiliate, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said it’s expected to stay there ‘through this year.’
While grappling with the rising cost the White House is also preparing for turbulence in the cost of diesel fuel – which hit its own record high last week.
The administration is weighing an emergency declaration to release diesel from a rarely used stockpile in a bid to address a major supply crunch and blunt rising prices, an administration official said.
Fuel costs had already been rising as the economy rebounded from the COVID-19 pandemic, but skyrocketed when Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine threw the global energy supply chain into chaos earlier this ear.
The president’s strategy to combat the increase, which he’s dubbed ‘Putin’s price hike,’ has largely involved stressing the need for a faster transition to green energy.
‘When it comes to the gas prices, we are going through an incredible transition that is taking place, that god-willing when it’s over, we’ll be stronger and the world will be stronger and less reliant on fossil fuels,’ Biden said, referring to a possible shift in Russia’s status as one of the world’s dominant energy suppliers.
‘What I’ve been able to do to keep it from getting worse – and it’s bad, the price of gas at the pump is…affecting a lot of families.’
After announcing a ban on all Russian energy imports, Biden in late March ordered the historic release of one million oil barrels per day across six months from the country’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve in a bid to stabilize prices.
He’s also criticized US oil and gas companies for price gouging and called for consequences for American energy producers sitting on unused drilling leases.
But those initiatives have not stopped prices at the pump from hitting a new high, beating the previous record set on Sunday of $4.59 per gallon.
That’s about 51 percent higher than it was at the same time last year.
Coastal states appear to be getting hit the hardest – California hit a new statewide average of approximately $6 per gallon.
New York, Oregon, Washington, and Alaska are also among the states to see record-high gas prices on Monday.
Diesel fuel, an alternative to regular gasoline that provides more power and mileage per gallon, saw its nationwide average price hit a new benchmark high last week on May 18.
The current average cost of diesel is $5.55. The record-high on May 18 was just under $5.58.
Diesel is essential for the US economy, powering farms and the construction sector along with the trucks, trains and boats that help move goods.
Rising diesel prices will help drive up inflation, which has hit 40-year highs.
The cost of gasoline rose by 43.6 percent in April from the same time last year, according to the Labor Department.
It’s likely part of why White House is considering tapping the Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve, created in 2000 to help with supply issues and used only once in 2012 in the wake of Hurricane Sandy.
The impact from such a release would be limited by the relatively small size of the reserve, which only contains 1 million barrels of diesel.