April 25, 2006 4:00 PM, EDT

Bush Orders Fuel Price Probe; Will Stop SPR Purchases This Summer

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resident Bush Tuesday directed his administration to help investigate any potential price gouging and said the government would halt crude oil purchases for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve this summer, news services reported.

The president also said he may temporarily suspend some environmental rules for gasoline blending to ease potential supply crunches.

His efforts came as government officials are under increasing political pressure to do something about soaring fuel prices, the Associated Press reported.

Bush said the SPR had enough oil on hand to guard against any major supply disruption over the next few months, AP reported.

Wholesale gasoline prices fell 8 cents to $2.10 a gallon on the New York Mercantile Exchange immediately following the president’s remarks, while crude oil fell for a second day to $72.65 a barrel after starting the week above $75, Bloomberg reported.

The president made the announcements in a speech to the Renewable Fuels Association in Washington.

While touting ethanol as a viable alternative fuel, the president said he would allow the Environmental Protection Agency to grant waivers to ease the switch to ethanol from methyl tertiary butyl ether, or MTBE, Bloomberg reported.

Ethanol supplies may not be adequate to meet demand this summer, the Department of Energy has said.

Unlike MTBE, which can be mixed at refineries and shipped by pipeline directly, ethanol must be mixed at local terminals after being shipped by truck, rail or barge.