Fatih Birol, the head of the International Energy Agency (IEA), announced that member states have reached an agreement to withdraw 400 million barrels from strategic oil reserves. This move aims to compensate for supply shortages resulting from military escalation in the Gulf and Middle East regions, marking the largest withdrawal in the organization’s history.
Speaking from the agency’s headquarters in Paris, Birol explained that consultations with the 32 member states resulted in a unanimous agreement to release the largest amount of emergency oil stocks into the markets. This is intended to offset lost supplies caused by the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
Member states will release 400 million barrels of oil to address the shortage and mitigate the immediate effects of market disruptions.
The official noted that the agency will continue to actively monitor markets and provide additional recommendations to member states as needed, expecting the secretariat to provide further details soon on the implementation of this collective action.
At the same time, the IEA reported that Gulf countries have reduced their oil production by at least 10 million barrels due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, representing the largest disruption to oil supplies in the history of the global oil market.
