US Emergency Oil Reserve Approaching All-Time Low Despite Trump Promise
Summary
The United States’ Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), which stores emergency oil, is reaching its lowest level since the 1980s as the government releases large amounts of oil to help stabilize energy prices amid the war with Iran. Despite President Donald Trump’s earlier promise to fill the reserves, the SPR has been significantly drained since early 2024 due to ongoing global energy challenges.Key Facts
- The Strategic Petroleum Reserve currently holds 365.1 million barrels of oil, down from 374.2 million barrels a week earlier.
- The reserve has decreased by over 50 million barrels since the war with Iran began at the end of February 2024.
- The SPR’s levels are nearing those last seen in August 1983, shortly after it was created in the 1970s.
- The SPR was created in 1975 to protect the U.S. from oil supply disruptions like the 1973 Oil Crisis.
- It stores oil in underground sites along the Gulf Coasts of Texas and Louisiana.
- Previous releases from the SPR occurred during major events such as the Gulf War, Hurricane Katrina, the Libyan civil war, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
- President Trump criticized the use of the SPR under President Biden and promised to refill it, but the reserve has continued to decline.
- In March 2024, the Trump administration announced a plan to release 172 million barrels over 120 days to help lower energy prices along with other nations in the International Energy Agency.
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