Topline
Member nations of the International Energy Agency plan to release 60 million barrels of oil to curb a rise in oil and gasoline prices that has worsened since Russia’s attack on Ukraine, adding to a sale of oil reserves previously announced by the United States, Bloomberg and the Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday.
Key Facts
IEA, a group of 31 industrialized countries including the U.S., said on Friday it had agreed to an emergency release from stockpiles but didn’t provide details about amounts.
Together with 60 million barrels of the 180 million that the Biden administration announced last week it will sell from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the IEA is planning to announce the release will total 120 million barrels, according to the Journal.
The IEA did not immediately respond to a Forbes request for comment.
West Texas Intermediate oil futures for May were up 0.21% to $102.16 a barrel on Wednesday morning.
Key Background
In March, the IEA announced its largest-ever coordinated release of nearly 62 million barrels, around half of which came from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The White House on Thursday said it will release 1 million barrels of oil per day from the federal emergency stockpile over six months, marking its largest-ever release, starting in May. Russia is the world's largest exporter of oil products and the second-largest exporter of crude oil, according to the IEA. The U.S. has banned imports of Russian oil and gas, while the European Union on Tuesday proposed blocking imports of Russian coal in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Tangent
The national average price for regular gasoline reached $4.164 a gallon on Wednesday, according to the American Automobile Association. Prices reached a new high of $4.173 on March 8, surpassing the previous high in July 2008.
Further Reading
IEA states still discussing coordinated oil release (Reuters)
IEA to hold emergency meeting following historic US oil release (CNN)
Why Are Gasoline Prices So High? Ukraine-Russia War Sparks Increases Across U.S. (Wall Street Journal)
Biden Administration Orders Record Oil Release From Strategic Reserve (Forbes)
