Will releasing millions of barrels of oil stockpiles really bring down fuel costs?

"The IEA said 400m barrels of emergency crude, a third of the group's total government stockpiles, would be released to help calm the oil price shock triggered by the US-Israel war on Iran. It is the biggest release of oil reserves in its history."

"As a condition of IEA membership, countries sign up to ensure they hold emergency oil reserves, equivalent to 90 days of net imports. In total, these amount to about 1.2bn barrels with about a third of this in the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve."

"There have only ever been four other coordinated releases of strategic supplies since the IEA's founding in 1974, underlining the seriousness of the current crisis. These were: in 1991, after Operation Desert Storm, President George H W Bush's military campaign against Iraq; in 2005, when..."

The International Energy Agency, established during the 1970s oil crises to prevent future energy shocks, has activated emergency protocols for only the fifth time in its history. The IEA's 32 member nations agreed to release 400 million barrels of crude oil, representing one-third of total government stockpiles, marking the largest emergency release ever. This action responds to oil price disruptions caused by geopolitical conflict affecting critical supply routes. Member countries maintain strategic reserves equivalent to 90 days of net imports, totaling approximately 1.2 billion barrels. While modern economies depend less on fossil fuels and benefit from diversified energy sources compared to the 1970s, global vulnerability to oil price shocks persists due to geographic chokepoints and supply concentration.

Read at www.theguardian.com