Dear Editor,

It is unfortunate that one of the first impressions visitors have of Warren is the electronic sign near the Glade Bridge, but I’ll address the latest misinformation just to add some perspective.

Contrary to the sign, Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, a technology company that analyzes real-time fuel prices, says, “The president has no control over what U.S. oil companies do. Companies produce at their will to meet market demands.”

As people may recall, demand in 2020 fell to the extent that the price of a barrel of crude oil fell below $0 for a short time. That did not translate to gasoline being free any more than the current price near $80 a barrel means that last years $2 price should now be 80 times higher. Domestic production has not rebounded to meet current demand, and OPEC and Russia have not increased their production either, because high oil prices benefit them just as they do local producers.

“The U.S. is forecast to account for 60% of non-OPEC-plus supply gains next year, now forecast at 1.9 million barrels per day, although the country is not expected to return to pre-COVID levels until the end of 2022.” So gas prices are the result of many factors totally unrelated to who happens to be in the oval office.

Look across the street from the electronic sign, where the company that owns the refinery regularly adds a few cents to the price of gasoline for Warren residents compared to stations in nearby towns. That is free enterprise capitalism at work.

Do industry lobbyists and politicians of both parties conspire to manipulate energy regulations and determine which energy sources dominate the market? No doubt. But that is a whole other issue.

Wes Jacobs,

Warren