IEA to accelerate release of strategic reserves due to diesel shortage

Countries of the International Energy Agency (IEA) have agreed to accelerate the release of oil and oil products from strategic reserves. First of all, they plan to direct additional volumes of diesel fuel to the world market, the shortage of which continues to support high prices.

This is stated in the decision of the IEA Governing Board, published on 15 October following a meeting of representatives of the agency's member countries.

According to the decision, countries should accelerate the supply of remaining strategic reserves, in particular to release over 20 million barrels of diesel fuel as soon as possible. Concrete plans for such deliveries have already been prepared.

In total, since the beginning of the large-scale reserve use program, approximately 330 million barrels of oil and oil products have entered the world market. Another about 100 million barrels remain unreleased.

The IEA noted that some states have already exceeded their initial commitments to use reserves, and others plan to do so in the near future. As a result, the total volume of released reserves will exceed the initially agreed 400 million barrels.

This is not a new reserve use program, but an acceleration of an already adopted decision. Recall that on 11 March 2026, IEA countries agreed on the largest coordinated release of strategic reserves in the agency's history to overcome supply disruptions due to the war in the Middle East and the crisis in the Strait of Hormuz.

Subsequently, on 2 October, G7 leaders agreed to accelerate the implementation of these commitments, prioritizing diesel fuel. And on 11 October, IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol proposed that governments consider the possibility of additional diesel release and faster implementation of previously agreed plans.

Now the agency's Governing Board has officially approved the acceleration of supplies. In addition to using reserves, the IEA called on countries with their own oil production and refining capacities to increase production of crude oil and finished petroleum products, primarily diesel.

The decision was adopted against the backdrop of an acute diesel fuel shortage on the world market. According to the IEA's October report, in September global exports of diesel and gasoil decreased by nearly 700 thousand barrels per day compared to the same period last year.

The main reasons were supply disruptions from the Middle East and a reduction in Russian exports due to damage to oil refineries. At the same time, supplies of finished petroleum products from the Persian Gulf countries are recovering much more slowly than crude oil exports.

In September, wholesale diesel prices in Europe and the US reached a record $220 per barrel. According to the IEA, expensive fuel is already affecting the cost of goods, purchasing power of the population, economic activity and inflation.

The agency warns that even the expected increase in global production of petroleum products at the end of 2026 will not allow for a quick elimination of the shortage. In the first quarter of 2027, the diesel market may return to a surplus, but a significant replenishment of depleted stocks is unlikely before the second half of 2027.

Accelerating the release of strategic reserves should increase available fuel volumes and ease tensions on the world market. At the same time, the IEA does not predict exactly how this decision will affect retail diesel prices in specific countries, including Ukraine.

Based on materials: International Energy Agency - decision of 15 October, IEA - October oil market report, IEA - statement of 11 October