Vice President JD Vance announced Tuesday that the Trump administration is tapping wartime authority to boost fuel production at a refinery in Tyler, Texas, as high energy prices continue to squeeze the economy.
Speaking at a rally in Texas, Vance told the crowd the administration had worked with Delek to invoke the Defense Production Act.
“I am pleased to announce that the Trump administration, working with the refinery at Delek, has used the Defense Production Act and we’re going to expand the refinery right here in Tyler, Texas,” Vance said.
The vice president laid out an ambitious goal for the facility.
“We want millions of gallons of commercial-grade and military-spec fuel to come out of this refinery, in addition to what it’s already producing,” Vance told rallygoers.
The Defense Production Act gives the president the power to ramp up production of certain items in order to advance national security.
The announcement comes at a critical moment for the administration. Elevated energy costs have been weighing on the economy and have become a political liability heading into the midterm elections.
On Tuesday, gasoline averaged about $4.34 per gallon, while diesel averaged roughly $6.28 per gallon, according to AAA.
It remains unclear whether the administration plans to use the Defense Production Act beyond the single Tyler refinery.
Industry expert urges caution
Not everyone is convinced the move will deliver quick relief.
Andy Lipow, president of Lipow Oil Associates, expressed skepticism last week when asked whether the wartime authority could bring down prices in general.
“Refineries that are currently in operation are already making as much diesel as they possibly can,” Lipow told The Hill. “There’s very little that the administration can do today to get more diesel fuel out of the refineries that are already in operation.”
Lipow went on to lay out the options he sees as available.
“Your choice is: you can send more money to the refineries that are in operation so they can make investments to produce more diesel months and years down the road or you can see if there’s an opportunity to restart some of the refineries that have been recently shut down or you can build new refineries,” he said.
By Lipow’s account, meaningful gains in diesel output could be months or years away rather than immediate.
Overseas conflicts drive prices higher
The high prices are tied to turmoil abroad. The war in Iran has driven up oil costs and weakened energy infrastructure in the Middle East. Meanwhile, Ukraine has targeted Russian refineries as the two countries remain at war.
Together, those pressures have kept fuel prices stubbornly high.
For now, the administration’s focus is on the Tyler facility, where it wants millions of additional gallons of commercial-grade and military-spec fuel produced on top of the refinery’s current output.
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