Oil and gas executive Rusty Braziel said during a Monday panel at EarthX that the direction of global oil prices depends largely on geopolitical stability in the Middle East.
Braziel, executive chairman of RBN Energy, pointed to recent volatility in crude markets and argued that domestic production alone is unlikely to push prices significantly lower.
“If prices are going to come back down, it’s going to have to happen in the Middle East; it’s not going to happen here,” Braziel said during the panel discussion.
His remarks came as panelists debated whether the United States can reduce exposure to international supply shocks through expanded domestic drilling, infrastructure investment, or emerging energy technologies such as nuclear and small modular reactors.
The panel featured Braziel, John Dabbar of the National Petroleum Council, and Jeff “Skunk” Baxter of the Nuclear Energy and National Security Coalition, moderated by David Hamilton. The conversation also turned to broader energy security concerns, with speakers warning that disruptions abroad can quickly translate into price spikes at the pump.
These warnings come as Texas drivers are already facing sharply higher fuel costs. Average gasoline prices in Texas have risen 36.1% year over year, with the statewide average for regular gasoline at $3.77 per gallon, The Dallas Express reported in early April. Diesel prices, the report found, climbed 60.9% over the same period, reaching more than $5 per gallon in parts of North Texas.
As of this writing, Dallas gas prices ranged from $3.36 to $3.99, according to the Gas Buddy app.
Fifty-five percent of respondents in a Reuters/Ipsos poll said rising gasoline prices had impacted their household finances, while 87% expected prices to climb further in the near term, DX previously reported.
Braziel’s comment came alongside a report that shipping activity in the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for oil and other cargo movement off Iran’s coast, briefly picked up over the weekend before slowing amid heightened hostilities.
The EarthX conference continues through April 22 and includes sessions on energy investment, conservation policy, and emerging technologies aimed at reshaping global energy systems.
