U.S. asks Europe to release its oil reserves

The United States has called on European countries to draw more oil from their emergency reserves in an effort to ease pressure on energy prices. Washington also announced that it will offer energy companies up to 40 million barrels of oil from the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said on September 29 that the United States and Japan are meeting their commitments, while some European countries have released only part of the reserves they had pledged. He called on member countries to fulfil those commitments.

The U.S. move comes at a time when global oil markets are facing supply disruptions linked to the conflict in Iran, restrictions on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz and damage to energy infrastructure. According to Reuters, the U.S. offer of 40 million barrels is the final part of a 172-million-barrel commitment under a broader IEA member-country agreement to release around 400 million barrels from strategic reserves.

In Europe, the emergency-reserves issue is being discussed as energy costs have risen sharply. European Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen has said the EU has spent more than 100 billion euros extra on energy this year. Meanwhile, IEA chief Fatih Birol has said further releases could be considered if supply disruptions worsen.

In parallel, the U.S. administration is considering other measures to curb fuel prices, including possible restrictions on exports of oil and refined products. However, according to Reuters, no final decision has yet been taken on those measures.