US Democrats Launch Bill to Hold Oil Companies Accountable for Any Cooperation with OPEC and ET EnergyWorld

WASHINGTON: Democratic U.S. lawmakers on Wednesday introduced a bill that would hold energy companies accountable if federal regulators find they worked with the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries to inflate oil prices.

The bill, filed by Senator Edward Markey and Representative Nanette Barragan, would prohibit an energy company from applying for new oil and gas licenses on federal lands and waters if the Federal Trade Commission finds that it has colluded with OPEC.

WHAT IS THE BACKGROUND?

In May, the FTC accused Pioneer Natural Resources CEO Scott Sheffield of exchanging hundreds of messages with OPEC officials to artificially inflate oil prices. The U.S. antitrust regulator approved Exxon Mobil’s $60 billion purchase of Pioneer but removed Sheffield from Exxon’s board.

Sheffield has denied the FTC’s allegations. Exxon, which has since bought Pioneer, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the bill. However, Exxon said it has sent the FTC more than 1.1 million documents and other information and data, and the agency has not raised any concerns about its business practices.

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT?

While the bill has little chance of passage with Republicans controlling the House of Representatives and Democrats holding only a slim majority in the Senate, it shows that some lawmakers are putting pressure on oil companies.

Last month, the U.S. Senate Budget Committee launched an investigation of domestic producers into any attempts to coordinate oil prices with OPEC, which the American Petroleum Institute, a lobbying group, called an “election stunt.”

Markey’s bill was also co-sponsored by about 11 other left-wing Democrats in the House of Representatives, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortz and Raul Grijalva.

Key quote

Markey said in a statement that the bill is “a first step toward ensuring that big oil companies face big consequences when they profit off the backs of hardworking Americans.”

(Reporting by Timothy Gardner, editing by Marguerita Choy)