The International Energy Agency is releasing 400 million barrels of oil to keep prices down

The International Energy Agency (IEA) has decided to release 400 million barrels of oil from its reserves to overcome the problems caused by the war between Israel, the United States and Iran. The decision was unanimously voted by 32 members of the organization.

This is stated in the IEA press release.

The agency was created in 1974 in response to the oil crisis caused by the Yom Kippur War between Israel, Egypt and Syria and the subsequent oil embargo by Arab states. Its members hold 1.2 billion barrels in public reserves and another 600 million in private reserves.

The reserves have previously been used five times: in 1991, 2005, and 2011, and twice in 2022 due to Russiaʼs full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The current release of reserves is the largest.

What preceded

After the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran on February 28, Iran responded by shelling US bases in Bahrain, Qatar, Kuwait and the UAE and by launching missile strikes on Israel. Some Iranian drones and missiles have targeted infrastructure and residential areas in Arab countries.

At the same time, tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has almost stopped. This is a narrow sea corridor between Iran and Oman, which connects the Persian Gulf with the Indian Ocean. About a fifth of the worldʼs oil exports pass through it — tens of millions of barrels a day. The markets reacted instantly: oil, gas and precious metals rose in price.

In particular, on March 9, world oil prices exceeded $100 per barrel for the first time in almost four years. However, they began to fall after US President Donald Trump declared that the war between Israel, the US and Iran was almost over.

He also announced that the US would lift sanctions against “certain countries” to lower oil prices. Brent crude is currently trading at around $90 a barrel.

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