US presses IEA allies for extra 100 million barrels

The United States told fellow International Energy Agency members that current plans to release emergency oil stocks are not enough to bring down rising fuel prices. US officials at an IEA gathering in Paris on Thursday, October 15, had not tabled a formal proposal. But they were informally lobbying for an added commitment of at least 100 million barrels, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter who asked not to be named because the talks were private.bloomberg.com

The push shows a widening gap between Washington and its allies over how hard to draw down strategic reserves. Conflicts tied to the Middle East and Russia are tightening diesel supplies and pushing pump prices to records, Reuters reported. Reuters said it could not immediately verify Bloomberg's report.briefs.co

What the IEA agreed

The IEA's 32-nation governing board did not approve new volumes on Thursday. Instead it agreed to speed up the remaining releases from its March collective action, including more than 20 million barrels of diesel "as soon as possible," Reuters reported. A source told Reuters the 20 million barrels of diesel was lower than the 50 million barrels considered earlier. The IEA said about 330 million barrels have been released so far. Total releases will end up above the original 400 million-barrel pledge, because some members have released more than they promised, according to Anadolu Agency.live.euronext.com+1

The board also urged members that produce and refine oil to raise supplies, particularly of diesel. The IEA Secretariat will monitor progress and report to G7 leaders on whether more action is needed, Anadolu reported.haberintelifi.aa.com.tr

Dispute over the extra barrels

In March, the IEA coordinated a record release of 400 million barrels of oil and fuel after the Iran war began, but some governments held on to their buffers, arguing they were not needed, Bloomberg reported. The United States contributed 172 million barrels. Energy Secretary Chris Wright has complained that several European countries released only a fraction of what they pledged, according to Strategic Energy Map.strategicenergymap.org+1

Under pressure from President Donald Trump, the Group of Seven agreed earlier this month to release 100 million barrels of diesel and crude, Reuters reported. EU officials later said that figure only covered the part of the March pledge that had not yet been released, which is why Washington wants more.reuters.com

Reserves still available

The IEA says member governments still hold about 1.1 billion barrels of public emergency stocks, including more than 200 million barrels of diesel. Director Fatih Birol said members stand "ready to release more of these stocks to the market if and when required," according to Arab News. Analysts and some governments have noted that completing the earlier pledges is not a new intervention of 100 million barrels, MarineLink reported. That is the gap the US is now pressing its allies to close.marinelink.com+1