Biden ‘looking at alternatives’ after OPEC ‘disappointment,’ doesn’t rule out easing Venezuela sanctions

President Biden said Thursday he had a reaction of “disappointment” after OPEC+ decided to cut oil production. Biden said the U.S. is looking at “alternatives” and that “we haven’t made up our mind yet.”

President Biden on Thursday told reporters that the decision by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC+) to slash oil production was not only disappointing but show there are greater problems at play. 

“It is a disappointment,” Biden said in response to questions about what the decision by the Saudi-led oil cartel means for Washington’s relationship with Riyadh. “And it says there are problems.”

The president’s comments come one day after OPEC+ announced it would be slashing oil production by 2 million barrels a day. 

OPEC+ MINISTERS AGREE TO CUT PRODUCTION BY 2M BARRELS PER DAY

President Biden boards Air Force One at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., Thursday, Oct. 6, 2022, to travel to Poughkeepsie, N.Y.  (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik / AP Newsroom)

The move will provide an economic boost to oil producing nations like Saudi Arabia, Russia and the UAE.

But it also means gas prices will likely spike as stock levels diminish. 

Biden said the White House was looking for “alternatives” but was tight-lipped on who the U.S. would turn to stave off rising prices at the pump, including whether the U.S. will ease sanctions on Venezuela to boost production.

“There’s a lot of alternatives,” he said Thursday. “We haven’t made up our mind yet.”

Check back on this developing story.