To Counter Russian Threats, IEA Ready to Release 61 Million Barrels of Oil Reserves to the Global Market

Amid the invasion of Ukraine, Russia threatened to double crude oil prices if Western countries imposed sanctions banning oil imports from Russia.

Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak stated, "It is quite clear that the rejection of Russian oil will have catastrophic consequences for the global market," as reported by Al Jazeera on Tuesday (March 8).

"The (crude oil) price increase will be unpredictable. The price will be US$300 per barrel, if not more," he threatened.

Russia indeed plays a major role in the global energy market. According to data from the International Energy Agency (IEA), until January 2022, Russia was the third-largest oil producer in the world, behind the United States and Saudi Arabia.

Russia is also the world's largest oil exporter, with a supply capacity of around 5 million barrels per day or 12% of total global trade. 60% of Russian oil is exported to Europe and 20% to China.

This data shows how Russia is truly capable of causing supply crises and price volatility in the global energy market.

Resistance from IEA Member Countries

Amid this situation, countries belonging to the International Energy Agency (IEA) have expressed strong resistance.

In its press release, the IEA stated, "Energy supplies must not be used as a tool of political coercion or as a threat to national and international security," they emphasized on Tuesday (March 1).

The IEA also affirmed that its member countries are prepared to release their national oil reserves to maintain supply security in the global energy market.

The following IEA member countries have committed to releasing large amounts of oil reserves:

1. United States: 30,000,000 barrels
2. Japan: 7,500,000 barrels
3. South Korea: 4,420,000 barrels
4. Germany: 3,215,000 barrels
5. United Kingdom: 2,200,000 barrels
6. Italy: 2,041,000 barrels
7. Spain: 2,000,000 barrels
8. Australia: 1,692,000 barrels
9. France: 1,500,000 barrels
10. Turkey: 1,500,000 barrels
11. Poland: 1,052,000 barrels

In addition to the countries mentioned above, there are 20 other IEA member countries that have committed to releasing their national oil reserves, with amounts below 1 million barrels per country.

Combined, the oil reserves that the IEA will release to counter the threat from Russia total 61.7 million barrels.

The IEA also indicated that this release of reserves could increase in the future, depending on the evolving situation.

The IEA claims that cumulatively, its member countries have 1.5 billion barrels of public oil reserves, plus 575 million barrels of industrial reserves.

Thus, the 61.7 million barrels to be released to the global market represent only about 3% of their total reserves.

(Also Read: Not Saudi Arabia, This is the Country with the Largest Oil Reserves in the World)