Another 45 Million Barrels of Crude Oil to be Released From Strategic Petroleum Reserve

The U.S. government is set to release another 45 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve over the coming months as part of the Biden administration’s efforts to combat nationwide shortages and sky-rocketing gas prices.

The fourth notice of sale was announced by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) on Tuesday and is part of President Biden’s March 31 commitment to release 1 million barrels of crude oil a day for six months to address global supply disruptions and volatile energy costs, which the DOE blames on the Russia–Ukraine conflict.

Russia is one of the world’s top petroleum producers and oil prices have been upended in recent months following President Vladimir Putin’s decision to launch his “special military operation” in Ukraine on Feb. 24.