U.S. taps final 40 million barrels from Strategic Petroleum Reserve

On Tuesday, the U.S. Department of Energy issued a request for proposals to release as many as 40 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve on a loan basis, marking the completion of the American share of a coordinated international drawdown prompted by supply disruptions from the war on Iran.

The solicitation represents the final tranche of the 172-million-barrel release President Donald Trump authorized in March, part of a broader International Energy Agency agreement in which roughly 30 member nations committed to collectively put 400 million barrels on global markets, the Energy Department said. Bids are due by 11:00 a.m. Central time on October 6.

Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in a statement that the U.S. and Japan have fulfilled their commitments under the accord, but that other participants have fallen short. "Several European member countries have released only a fraction of the crude oil and petroleum products they pledged," Wright said. "We urge every member country to fulfill its commitments."

The release is structured as an exchange, not an outright sale. Companies that borrow crude from the reserve must return the same volume plus a premium — the Energy Department said previous exchanges achieved returns of up to 25% more barrels than were released, at no cost to taxpayers. Deliveries under this solicitation are scheduled for November and December 2026, the department said.

The SPR's inventory has fallen to under 284 million barrels, a figure not seen since 1982, according to Reuters . Should inventories fall below 252.4 million barrels as a result of the drawdown, federal statute would curtail routine releases — though the president would retain authority to tap the reserve in a genuine national emergency.

Fuel prices have surged since U.S. and Israeli forces launched strikes against Iran on February 28. At the pump, gasoline is running around $4.45 a gallon — nearly 50% higher than before the war — and diesel has shot up roughly 70% to all-time highs of about $6.50 a gallon, according to Reuters. The sustained run-up in fuel costs has drawn growing political heat toward Trump and his party as voters head toward November's midterm elections.

The SPR dropped below 300 million barrels for the first time in over four decades earlier this year, shedding 6.1 million barrels in a single week. Before the conflict began, the reserve held approximately 415 million barrels. When the Energy Department first tendered the same 40 million barrels in June, companies agreed to take only around 500,000 barrels, according to Reuters, leaving the department little choice but to put the offer back on the market. The crude in Tuesday's solicitation will originate from the SPR's Big Hill and Bryan Mound sites, the Energy Department said.