IEA oil release enters final stretch with 100 million barrels

The IEA oil release will wrap up with the 100 million barrels still outstanding from March, the agency said after its governing board met on Thursday.

Members of the International Energy Agency will speed up the remaining volumes. Those include 20 million barrels of diesel, which they plan to release “as soon as possible.”

So far, countries have tapped 330 million barrels of the 400 million they promised in March. The final total will top that, since some members released more than they had pledged.

IEA oil release and the US push

Washington had pressed informally for an additional release to ease diesel prices. However, it made no formal proposal at Thursday’s meeting.

European officials, speaking privately, doubted that now was a good time to free up extra barrels. As a result, members stuck to finishing the March plan.

The US Energy Department said further actions “with a focus on diesel are under review and in progress.” It also said the Trump administration “continues to hold European nations accountable” for earlier commitments to limit supply disruptions.

That 100 million total likely folds in 40 million barrels that Washington itself said in September it would free up.

Why diesel matters

Conflicts in the Middle East and Russia are squeezing supplies of diesel. Pump prices have hit records in many places.

Trump has even weighed a ban on US diesel exports. He also unveiled a supply arrangement with Vladimir Putin, the Russian president.

The US wants European states to do more against the strain caused by the Iran war and by Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries. Both squeeze diesel supplies and push pump prices to records, and the IEA oil release is meant to ease that strain.

Earlier this month, the Group of Seven said it would free up to 100 million barrels. EU officials said that figure only covered the unreleased part of the March action.

In March, the agency coordinated a 400-million-barrel action covering oil and fuel. Yet several governments held back their buffers, saying they did not need them.

The Energy Department said that, after Trump’s G7 announcement, every European member of the agency had committed to finish its March share right away and to release extra barrels. The agency declined to say more than its statement did.

Markets and reserves

West Texas Intermediate rose 2.08% to $96.03 after the news.

The US emergency stockpile sits in storage sites such as Bryan Mound in Freeport, Texas. Those caverns hold the crude that governments draw on in a crisis.

The Paris-based agency said members were willing to take “further actions to address challenges in global energy markets.” It gave no more detail.

The IEA oil release comes as pump prices climb, so drivers and small businesses feel any shift in supply first.

For now, traders will watch how fast the diesel barrels reach the market, and whether Washington asks for more.

Overall, the IEA oil release shows governments scrambling to cool prices while the war keeps supplies tight.