The speed of the energy shock rippling out from the U.S.-Iran conflict in the Middle East and the near-paralysis of the Strait of Hormuz forced the 32-member IEA last week to approve a 400-million-barrel release from Strategic Petroleum Reserves to help cushion the blow to the global economy. The bulk of that supply will come from the U.S., with the Trump administration preparing a request to exchange 86 million barrels of crude oil as soon as next Wednesday.
The planned U.S. SPR release of 86 million barrels of crude, part of a broader 172 million-barrel U.S. release and part of the IEA's "historic" 400-million-barrel emergency release action plan across 32 nations to shield economies from the worst energy shock ever to hit the world, has been altered by the end of the week.
Under an exchange program, the Department of Energy will allow companies to borrow crude now and return it later with additional barrels as a premium.
Bloomberg Opinion and commodities columnist Javier Blas added more color on the altered SPR plan by the DoE on X, saying:
The U.S. government seems to have changed its mind about the terms of the use of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve:
Earlier this week, it announced a SPR release (an outright sale, and the method used in the emergency actions of 1991, 2005, 2011, and 2022). But now, the DOE has published details for something different: a SPR exchange (effectively, an oil loan, with the barrels returned later with interest).
Secretary of Energy Chris Wright released a statement saying this SPR release will begin next week and "take approximately 120 days to deliver based on planned discharge rates."
"President Trump promised to protect America's energy security by managing the Strategic Petroleum Reserve responsibly, and this action demonstrates his commitment to that promise," Wright said.
He continued, "Unlike the previous administration, which left America's oil reserves drained and damaged, the United States has arranged to more than replace these strategic reserves with approximately 200 million barrels within the next year, 20% more barrels than will be drawn down, and at no cost to the taxpayer."
The current U.S. SPR holds about 415 million barrels, up from roughly 395 million barrels one year ago.
As JPMorgan noted last week, no matter how large the SPR release is, it would not be able to offset the biggest issue facing global energy markets: the sudden elimination of 16 million barrels currently stuck in the Gulf due to the Strait of Hormuz blockade. That's because it's not a stockpile problem, but rather a flow problem.
Beyond the incoming SPR dump, the Trump administration has taken several steps to combat triple-digit Brent and WTI prices by waiving a century-old law that requires U.S. ships to transport goods between U.S. ports, allowing domestic supplies to be shifted around more quickly. The administration then allowed Russian seaborne crude already at sea to be sold.
... and now, with a major U.S. attack on Iran's Kharg Island in the overnight hours, this will only raise more fears of tightening global supplies.