The International Energy Agency said on Saturday that member countries had so far released 325 million barrels of oil and petroleum products from strategic reserves, out of the 400 million barrels they pledged to release last March.
The update came a day after G7 countries, in coordination with the agency, agreed to immediately release 100 million barrels of diesel and crude oil to ease global concerns over energy supplies stemming from the fallout of the war between the United States and Iran.
Pressure on diesel supplies
Fatih Birol, executive director of the International Energy Agency, said in a post on X on Saturday that he had attended a meeting of G7 leaders at the invitation of French President Emmanuel Macron to discuss the global energy market and severe pressures facing diesel supplies.
Birol added that he had presented options for addressing current pressures on the energy market and diesel supplies, stressing the agency's readiness to provide support and continue working with member countries and partners to strengthen global energy security.
Release to be carried out over four months
The G7 said in a statement that the reserve release process would continue for four months, with the first tranche prioritizing diesel. It would begin immediately and continue for 20 days.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on his Truth Social platform that European countries had agreed to release huge volumes from their diesel stocks and that the process would begin immediately.
French President Emmanuel Macron said G7 countries had agreed not to take measures restricting the exchange of energy products and oil among partner countries.
The agency's largest coordinated release in history
The move comes amid the fallout from the wars in Iran and Ukraine, which have led to a decline in exports from two regions that are among the world's largest sources of diesel production, pushing prices to record levels in several markets.
IEA member countries agreed last March to release 400 million barrels of oil onto the markets in the agency's largest coordinated reserve release in its history.
