The Biden administration had announced a further 3 mn barrel purchase plan last month. That's been cancelled for now.
The Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) currently contains 363 million barrels of oil, down 43% from January 2021. Supplies from the SPR hit the market when oil prices rocketed higher in late 2021.
The US Department of Energy said it remains committed to refilling the SPR, but for now its pulling back on purchase plans:
- "Keeping the taxpayer’s interest at the forefront, we will (go ahead with the announced 3mn barrel buy) ... and will continue to solicit available capacity as market conditions allow"
