President Donald Trump reshared a White House post on Sunday about restarting California’s Sable Pipeline, an infrastructure idle since 2015 due to an oil spill. The pipeline’s reopening aims to add 50,000 barrels of oil per day to the market, though it can carry up to 200,000 barrels daily. Energy Secretary Chris Wright used emergency powers granted by the Defense Production Act to order the pipeline’s restart, but California courts have repeatedly slowed the process by siding with state regulators.
Meanwhile, OPEC+ announced a supply increase of 188,000 barrels per day starting in September, with Saudi Arabia and Russia leading the boost at roughly 62,000 barrels each. This move completes a previous round of production cuts that had withheld 1.65 million barrels daily since April 2023. However, some production limits remain in place until further talks in 2027, keeping the global oil supply from fully loosening.
Despite these efforts to pump more oil, gas prices remain stubbornly high in California. Drivers paid $5.49 per gallon late July, leading the nation, and about $1.39 above the national average. The national average itself stands near $4.10, almost a dollar more than last year. Earlier this summer, Trump urged fuel retailers to lower prices to $2.50 a gallon, a goal that has yet to materialize on the ground.
Oil prices have also held steady, with Brent crude near $87 and U.S. crude around $84 in late July. The added supply has not translated into cheaper fuel for drivers, reflecting persistent market tightness and regional challenges. California’s high prices highlight the limits of supply-side fixes when regulatory and legal hurdles persist.
This content is for informational purposes and does not constitute financial advice.
