U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright pumps gas at a gas station in Corpus Christi, Texas, United States, February 27, 2026.
Sheila Dang | Reuters
Secretary of Energy Chris Wright said oil and gas prices will begin to fall when the United States begins to eliminate Iran’s ability to impede tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuzas Americans face soaring gas prices due to the war in Iran.
“The plan is to get oil, natural gas, fertilizer and all products from the Gulf moving through the straits before too long,” Wright said on Fox News on Sunday. “We are massively reducing their ability to strike with missiles and drones, and that attrition rate is going to increase in the coming days. So we will be careful, we will be cautious, but the energy will flow soon.”
President Donald Trump was elected to a second term in the White House in part by promising to lower gas prices and beat high inflation. He frequently touted the drop in gasoline prices ahead of November. midterm electionswhich will determine control of Congress for the remainder of his term.
But gas and oil prices have soared since the start of the war in Iran, with shipping bottlenecks in the Strait of Hormuz driving the rise. About 20% of the world’s energy supply passes through the strait.
Gasoline has jumped to more than $3.46 a gallon on average in the United States, according to Gas Buddy. American crude oil climbed to more than $91 per barrel, and the global benchmark Brent crude soared to more than $92 a barrel.
Wright said that “a large oil tanker has already crossed the strait without any problems.” Generally, approximately 100 tankers and cargo ships cross the strait every day.
Wright said the disruptions would last “weeks, certainly not months.”
“We think this is a small price to pay to achieve a world where energy prices return to where they were previously,” Wright said. “Iran is finally going to be devastated, and now we can see more investment, more free flow of trade, less ability to threaten energy supplies.”
Read more about CNBC’s politics coverageAsked about the possibility of tapping the U.S. strategic oil reserve to reduce pain at the pump, Wright suggested such a move was not yet necessary. In the past, SPR has been used to mitigate disruptions to oil flows.
“We are more than happy to use [the SPR] if necessary,” Wright said on CBS’s “Face the Nation.” “But… it’s a logistical issue, where do they need the oil? They need oil from refineries in Europe and Asia. »
Trump also downplayed the possibility of resorting to the SPR.
“We have a lot of oil. Our country has a tremendous amount of it,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Saturday. “There’s a lot of oil there. It will heal very quickly.”
WATCH: No traffic will pass through the Strait of Hormuz until a resolution with Iran, according to Kpler’s Matt Smith