325m barrels of emergency oil released, says IEA

Paris: The International Energy Agency reported on Saturday that its member countries have released 325 million barrels of oil and oil-derivative products from strategic reserves, exceeding the 400 million barrels pledged in March. This development occurred a day after G7 nations, in collaboration with the IEA, decided to release 100 million barrels of diesel and crude oil to alleviate global energy supply issues triggered by the US-Iran conflict.

The G7's distribution of the 100 million barrels was not clarified whether it included the remaining 75 million barrels from the initial March commitment or if it was in addition to it. US President Donald Trump had been urging allies to release diesel reserves to counter a surge in fuel prices, affecting America and other regions.

Trump claimed the US will soon fill its strategic oil stockpile "for nothing". Restricted diesel supplies result from the Middle East war, where Iran has limited ship traffic through the Strait of Hormuz as a response to US and Israeli strikes. Ukrainian attacks on Russian refineries, part of their counter-offensive against Moscow's strikes, have also impacted the market.

The IEA stated in a Saturday statement that "approximately 325 million barrels of the IEA collective action announced on March 11 have been released so far, accounting for more than 80 percent of the 400 million barrels initially pledged." The March pledge was made by the IEA's 32 member countries, comprising all G7 nations: Britain, Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the US.

On Friday, the G7 agreed to release over the next four months 100 million barrels of oil and oil-derivative products, with a substantial diesel release within the first 20 days. They also pledged no ban on diesel exports among them, averting a threat that Washington had previously raised and later dismissed by Trump.