The U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) was established in December 1975 in the wake of the 1973 OPEC oil embargo. The law establishing the SPR said it was designed “to reduce the impact of severe energy supply interruptions” such as that caused by the embargo. The U.S. government began to fill the reserve in the late 1970s. At its high point in 2010, the level reach 727 million barrels. At present, it stands at 347 million barrels, the lowest level since August 1983. President Trump has repeatedly claimed that he “filled up”…
