Energy Policy: Ranking Options to Improve the Readiness of and Expand the Strategic Petroleum Reserve

GAO reviewed readiness and expansion options for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), focusing on: (1) eliminating problems related to the buildup of geothermal heat and gas in some crude oil in SPR; (2) replacing existing facilities and systems to extend the useful life of the reserve; (3) filling SPR to the current 750-million-barrel capacity or expanding and filling SPR to 1 billion barrels; and (4) increasing the daily drawdown rate from 4.5 million to 6 million barrels for the current SPR size, as well as for a 1-billion-barrel reserve.