Government to Release 4.42 Million Barrels of Strategic Oil Reserves... "In Consultation with IEA"

IEA Joins Decision to Release Strategic Oil Reserves... Total Release of 61.71 Million Barrels
US Releases 30 Million Barrels... "Joining the Will of IEA Member Countries"

On the 4th, fuel price information is displayed at a gas station in Seoul amid rising oil prices due to Russia's invasion of Ukraine and other factors. Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Sejong=Reporter Lee Jun-hyung] The government will release 4.42 million barrels of strategic oil reserves to stabilize the oil market.

The government announced on the 5th that it has decided to release 4.42 million barrels of strategic reserves in consultation with the International Energy Agency (IEA). Earlier, at the IEA ministerial meeting held on the 1st of this month, the government agreed with IEA member countries including the United States and the United Kingdom to release 60 million barrels of strategic reserves. This decision was made based on the assessment that not only have oil prices surged sharply following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, but there is also an increased possibility of supply disruptions.

The IEA believes that despite additional production plans by oil-producing countries such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE), it will be insufficient to cover the supply shortfall. Therefore, the IEA's assessment is that to stabilize the oil market, an additional supply of 2 million barrels per day of strategic reserves should be released for 30 days through international cooperation.

Subsequently, member countries coordinated the release volumes and ultimately decided to release a total of 61.71 million barrels of strategic reserves. Among these, South Korea's release volume is 4.42 million barrels. The United States plans to release 30 million barrels, which accounts for half of the total IEA release volume.

This release of strategic reserves by the government comes three months after jointly participating in a release with allies such as the United States and Japan in December last year. At that time, the government released 3.17 million barrels of strategic reserves.

A government official stated, "Through the release of strategic reserves, we want to share the will of IEA member countries that energy resources cannot be used as geopolitical tools," adding, "The government's strategic reserves exceed the IEA recommended standard of 90 days, so even if an additional oil supply crisis occurs, we will be able to respond adequately."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.