International Energy Agency member countries have agreed to release 400 million barrels of oil from strategic reserves, marking the largest coordinated release in history, aiming to calm energy markets shaken by war in Middle East, the head of the energy watchdog announced on Wednesday.
"I can now announce that IEA countries have unanimously decided to launch the release of emergency oil stocks in our agency's history. IEA countries will be making 400 million barrels of oil available to the market to offset the supply lost through the effective closure of the strait," said Fatih Birol during a press conference on the situation in global energy markets.
Birol described the move as a "major action aiming to alleviate the immediate impacts of the disruption in markets."
"But to be clear, the most important thing for a return to stable flows of oil and gas is the resumption of transit to the state of Hormuz," he added.
He noted that the IEA would continue monitoring global markets closely and could recommend further actions to its member countries if necessary.
Birol underlined that the agency was created more than five decades ago with the mission of safeguarding global energy security.
"It is what we are doing today for oil markets and what we have been and will continue to entire energy sector," he said.
Earlier, Birol revealed that member countries currently hold more than 1.2 billion barrels of public emergency oil stocks. In addition, about 600 million barrels of industry stocks are held under government obligations.
Experts note that such a move could help offset some supply disruptions caused by the war between the US–Israel alliance and Iran. However, they warn that a prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz would severely disrupt supply in many regions.
Oil markets experienced sharp volatility at the beginning of the week. The price of Brent crude climbed to $114.3 per barrel on Monday, its highest level since June 2022, driven by supply concerns. Prices later retreated during the day after US President Donald Trump said the war with Iran could end soon.
However, prices declined on Tuesday after a now-deleted social media post by US Energy Secretary Chris Wright, claiming that the US Navy was escorting a tanker through the Strait of Hormuz, accelerated selling.
By Handan Kazanci
Anadolu Agency
energy@aa.com.tr
