1. How much oil did the IEA release in 2026?
On 11 March 2026 IEA member countries agreed to make 400 million barrels of emergency oil available, and on 19 March the IEA confirmed pledges of 426 million barrels; the agency calls it “by far the largest ever” collective action. The decision came eleven days after the war began on 28 February and nine days after Iran's Revolutionary Guards closed the Strait of Hormuz on 2 March. The IEA's first update, on 15 March, gave figures by region: 195.8 million barrels from the Americas, 108.6 million from Asia Oceania and 107.5 million from Europe, 72 per cent of it crude. Those regional figures add up to 411.9 million barrels (our calculation), already more than the 400 million agreed. Members in Asia Oceania were to make stocks available immediately, those in the Americas and Europe from the end of March.
The confirmed list of 19 March breaks down into 280 million barrels of government stocks, 119 million of obligated industry stocks and 28 million of extra production from Canada and Mexico. By type, 301 million barrels are crude and 125 million refined products; in Europe, the IEA said, contributions “will primarily take the form of refined oil products”. The agency adds that this split is not yet final; the country rows add up to 426.2 million barrels (our calculation). How the IEA binds its members to act together is covered in our glossary entry on the IEA release mechanism.
| Country | Contribution (mb) | Form per IEA |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 172.2 | public, crude (as exchanges) |
| Japan | 79.8 | 54.0 public + 25.8 industry |
| Canada | 23.6 | extra production |
| South Korea | 22.5 | – |
| Germany | 19.5 | public (EBV) |
| France | 14.6 | – |
| United Kingdom | 14.0 | industry: 4.3 crude + 9.7 products |
| Türkiye | 11.7 | – |
| Spain | 11.6 | industry, products only |
| Italy | 10.0 | – |
| Poland | 7.5 | – |
| Hungary | 6.1 | – |
| Netherlands | 5.4 | – |
| Australia | 4.8 | – |
| Mexico | 3.9 | extra production |
| Austria | 2.4 | public, crude |
| Czechia | 2.2 | – |
| Sweden | 2.1 | – |
| Greece | 2.0 | – |
| Portugal | 2.0 | – |
| Finland | 1.8 | – |
| Ireland | 1.7 | – |
| New Zealand | 1.6 | – |
| Denmark | 1.2 | – |
| Lithuania | 0.6 | – |
| Norway | 0.4 | – |
| Belgium | 0.3 | – |
| Estonia | 0.3 | – |
| Latvia | 0.3 | – |
| Luxembourg | 0.1 | – |
| Total (all 30 countries) | 426 | 280 public, 119 industry, 28 extra production; 301 crude, 125 products |
2. How much has actually reached the market?
About 290 million barrels had been released by 21 July 2026, the IEA's Executive Director said, “with more continuing to flow to the market”: roughly 68 per cent of the 426 million barrels pledged (our calculation). We have found no country-by-country delivery figures from the IEA, but its report of 11 September shows that releases continued: government stocks fell by a further 19 million barrels in August. European countries had drawn 63 million barrels from emergency reserves by July, according to S&P Global.
The US contribution of 172.2 million barrels is a loan, not a sale: the Department of Energy lends crude from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to companies that return it later with premium barrels, and on 11 March it expected deliveries to take about 120 days. The SPR fell from 415.4 million barrels at the end of February to 285.0 million in the week to 11 September, a drop of 130.5 million barrels (EIA; difference: our calculation). Japan is the second-largest contributor with 79.8 million barrels, followed by Canada, whose 23.6 million come from extra production. Weekly figures are on our US Strategic Petroleum Reserve level page.
3. What did the UK and the rest of Europe do?
The UK government announced a contribution of 13.5 million barrels on 12 March 2026, while the IEA's table of 19 March lists 14.0 million barrels, all from company stocks: 4.3 million of crude and 9.7 million of products. In a written statement to Parliament, the government said the UK would contribute “the requested 13.5 million barrels, reflecting our share of oil consumption”; we have found no explanation for the difference. The UK has no government-owned stocks. Under the Compulsory Stocking Obligation companies hold the oil, and a release normally works by the Secretary of State lowering their obligation through legally binding directions (IEA). Anadolu Agency reported that the UK would reduce its obligations rather than physically release stocks. We found no published figure for how many days the obligation was cut, or for how long. At the end of the first quarter of 2026 the UK held 10.2 million tonnes of oil stocks, which DESNZ describes as “more than meeting” the IEA's 90-day requirement.
In continental Europe, contributions came mostly as refined products. Germany pledged 19.5 million barrels of government stocks held by its agency EBV, France 14.6 million, Spain 11.6 million of products from industry stocks and Italy 10.0 million, also from industry (IEA). Switzerland, although an IEA member, has no row in the table. Our 90-day rule page explains how emergency days are counted; the UK detail is on United Kingdom: the stocking obligation.
4. How does 2026 compare with 1991, 2005, 2011 and 2022?
2026 is the sixth IEA collective action and, at 426 million barrels, more than twice the size of the two 2022 actions combined, which the IEA put at 182.7 million barrels (ratio: our calculation). The table shows what the IEA decided each time and what the United States contributed.
| Trigger | Decided | IEA action | US share and outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gulf War | 17 Jan 1991 | plan for 2.5 mb/d, 2.0 mb/d of it from stocks | 33.75 mb authorised, bids accepted for only 17.3 mb |
| Hurricane Katrina | 2 Sep 2005 | 60 mb at 2 mb/d for 30 days | 30 mb offered, 11.0 mb sold; plus emergency loans of 9.8 mb (CRS R42460) or about 13.2 mb (CRS RS22233) |
| Libya | 2011 | 60 mb: 38 public, 22 industry | 30 mb offered, 30.6 mb sold |
| Ukraine war, action 1 | 1 Mar 2022 | 62.7 mb | 30 mb |
| Ukraine war, action 2 | 1 Apr 2022 | 120 mb (about 88 crude, 32 products) | 60 mb, part of the US's own 180 mb programme |
| Iran war, Hormuz | 11 Mar 2026 | 400 mb agreed, 426 mb pledged | 172.2 mb as exchanges |
mb = million barrels, mb/d = million barrels a day. Sources: UPI (17 Jan 1991), CRS R42460 (1 May 2017) and RS22233 (3 Oct 2005), World Oil (16 Sep 2011), IEA (1 Apr 2022, 14 Apr 2022, 19 Mar 2026).
Two patterns stand out. First, US sales twice fell well short of the volumes offered: bids were accepted for only 17.3 of 33.75 million barrels in 1991, and 11.0 of 30 million barrels were sold in 2005, whereas 30.6 of 30 million were sold in 2011. Second, a large share comes not from government stocks but from obligated industry stocks: 22 of 60 million barrels in 2011 and 119 of 426 million in 2026. How much all IEA countries delivered in 1991 is not documented; the plan was set in barrels per day. Whether any of these releases lowered prices is examined in Do releases lower prices?
5. Will there be a second IEA release?
Nothing has been decided: on 18 September 2026 French President Emmanuel Macron said he would convene a G7 meeting “considering options for a potential release of strategic stockpiles”, without naming a volume or a date (World Oil). The case for another round rests on the supply gap. The IEA's report of 11 September says more than 10 million barrels a day of Gulf output are still shut in, observed stocks have fallen by 507 million barrels since February, and effective spare capacity is just 0.22 million barrels a day. After a partial reopening from 18 June to 5 July, the Strait of Hormuz was closed again on 11 July. There are stocks to draw on: in July the IEA said member countries still held over 1 billion barrels of government-controlled stocks.
In the United States, the Department of Energy said on 11 March that it would “more than replace these strategic reserves with approximately 200 million barrels within the next year”, at no cost to taxpayers; for now the SPR stands at 285.0 million barrels (EIA). In the UK, we found no government position on a second release. For each country's cover in days, see the Oil Reserves Monitor overview.
How to cite: Global Oil Shock (Jörg Dässler), “IEA Oil Stock Release 2026: Country Contributions”, as of 23 Sep 2026, https://globaloilshock.com/en/strategic-oil-reserves/iea-release-2026/