US to Release 53.3 Million Barrels from Strategic Petroleum Reserve

Moscow (ANTARA) - The US Department of Energy has stated that it will release 53.3 million barrels of oil from its strategic petroleum reserve as part of efforts to stabilise global fuel supplies.

“The US Department of Energy (DOE) today announced the awarding of contracts for the exchange of approximately 53.3 million barrels of crude oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) locations at Bayou Choctaw, Bryan Mound, Big Hill, and West Hackberry,” according to the statement.

Deliveries will begin immediately, the department said, adding that around 35 million barrels have already been delivered to the market so far.

The decision is a follow-up to the release of a total of 172 million barrels to the market from US reserves as part of coordinated measures by the International Energy Agency (IEA) to stabilise global oil supplies, the department stated.

In March, the IEA said it would release 400 million barrels of emergency oil stocks due to the situation in the Middle East.

US and Israeli military operations against Iran have effectively halted shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, the main route for global oil and LNG supplies from Gulf countries.

Oil prices have exceeded $100 (Rp1.7 million) per barrel amid events in the Middle East.

At the end of February, US strategic reserves stood at just over 415 million barrels.

After the planned release, those reserves could fall below 250 million barrels, potentially reaching the lowest point in history since the US Department of Energy began collecting weekly inventory data in August 1982.

By the end of April, strategic reserves had fallen below 400 million barrels.