Here are your top FOX Business Flash headlines for March 18th.
The Chairman of the House Committee on Natural Resources is asking the heads of three major energy companies to testify as Congressional Democrats and the White House try to pin the blame for the continued rise in gas prices on Russian President Vladimir Putin and the oil companies.
Chairman Raul M. Grijalva of Arizona wants to hear from the CEOs of EOG Resources, Devon Energy Corporation and Occidental Petroleum at an April 5 hearing.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee also asked executives from BP, Chevron, Devon Energy, ExxonMobil, Pioneer Natural Resources and Royal Dutch Shell to testify on April 6.
Vicki Hollub, CEO of Occidental Petroleum, speaks at the 23rd World Petroleum Congress at the George R. Brown Convention Center on December 8, 2021 in Houston. (Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images/Getty Images)
Rick Mancrief, CEO and President of Devon Energy Corp., speaks during an interview in New York on Monday, February 28, 2022. (Christopher Goodney/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)
President Biden has faced criticism for sharing a chart with incorrect data as he accused energy companies of seeking to “increase their profits at the expense of hard-working Americans.” The White House also coined the phrase “#PutinPriceHike” and used TikTok influencers to promote their message.
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Grijalva sent separate emails to EOG’s Ezra Jacob, Devon’s Rick Mancrief and Occidental’s Vicki Hollub.
House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Raul Grijalva, Arizona, makes closing remarks during a House Natural Resources Committee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., June 29, 2020. (BONNIE CASH/POOL/AFP via Getty Images/ Getty Pictures)
The chairman focused on EOG, saying in February that it had no plans to increase production and saying 2021 was a “record-breaking year.” EOG has more than 1,800 approved but unused drilling permits, Grijalva said.
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The industry said the permit is just the first step in a process that includes finding out if there is oil or gas in the ground to mine.
In a letter to Devon Energy, Grijalva said the company has over 700 approved but unused drilling permits. And the chairman accused Occidental Petroleum of wanting to “prioritize a $3 billion share repurchase and increase dividend in 2022” instead of lowering gas prices.
Devon Energy declined to comment to FOX Business on whether Mancrief will appear before the committee next month.
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The American Petroleum Institute, a trade group representing energy companies, responded to political criticism by saying that “in the economy, retail prices in many industries are falling more slowly than they are rising – this is not a new phenomenon.”
“As we have seen in the past, it takes time for changing market conditions to be reflected throughout the supply chain and for the price of crude oil to be widely reflected in the price we pay at local gas stations, over 95 percent of which are independent small businesses and are not run by oil companies. companies,” Frank Macchiarola, senior vice president of the American Petroleum Institute, told FOX Business.
| Ticker | Security | past | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EOG | EOG RESOURCES INC. | 117.87 | +4.87 | +4.31% |
| OKSI | OXIDENTAL PETROLEUM CORP. | 57.03 | -0.96 | -1.66% |
| DVN | DEVON ENERGY CORP. | 57.52 | +5.06 | +9.65% |
FOX Business also reached out to Occidental Petroleum and EOG for comment.
Suzanne O’Halloran of FOX Business contributed to this report.