BATON ROUGE, La. ,BRPROUD) — Louisiana is quickly seeing the effects of US sanctions on Russia and the biggest pain is on our gas tanks as prices rise as high as four dollars a gallon at the pump. While the goal of US sanctions on Russia is to cripple Russia’s economy, the trickle-down effect is raising the price of crude oil.
“American dependency on foreign energy leaves us open,” said Tommy Faucheux, president of the Louisiana Mid-Continent Oil and Gas Association, “The price of oil is such a large component of the price of a gallon of gasoline, Louisianians, people around the country are going to see higher gas prices.”
For the first time since 2014 global oil prices are over $100 per barrel. Faucheux said he’s seeing a trend that will continue to impact energy markets globally.
“So we are seeing a lot of our members who play on the world stage make decisions as it relates to the Russia Ukraine situation,” said Faucheux.
Joining many other major companies in pulling American business out of Russia. Faucheux says this is the time for the United States to take advantage of our own resources.
“If the United States could produce its own energy then we could avoid these spikes in oil and gas prices when there are large geopolitical events such as what we are seeing right now,” said Faucheux.
Currently, there is a limit on the amount of oil and gas that can be produced in the US. Faucheux said there needs to be a better policy to change this.
“The more energy we produce at home, the better it is for the Louisiana economy,” said Faucheux.
