Canada and a bunch of dozens of other countries have agreed to release 400 million barrels of oil from their strategic reserves because the Iran war threatens the worldwide supply.
The International Energy Agency (IEA), which comprises Canada and 31 other member nations, made the announcement in a release Wednesday after it said a gathering was conducted “to evaluate market conditions amid the conflict within the Middle East and consider the choices to handle supply disruptions.”
The IEA said it’s the sixth time such a co-ordinated stock release has been done because the organization was created in 1974.
“The oil market challenges we face are unprecedented in scale, subsequently I’m very glad that IEA Member countries have responded with an emergency collective motion of unprecedented size,” IEA executive director Fatih Birol said in a release.
“Oil markets are global so the response to major disruptions must be global too. Energy security is the founding mandate of the IEA, and I’m pleased that IEA Members are showing strong solidarity in taking decisive motion together.”
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Iran has blocked the Strait of Hormuz shipping route by threatening any vessels that try to go through the narrow channel separating the Persian Gulf from global shipping routes. About 20 to 25 per cent of the world’s oil supply relies on the strait being open to shipping traffic.
Based on the IEA, its members hold emergency stockpiles of greater than 1.2 billion barrels of oil, with a further 600 million of industry stocks held under government obligation.
“The conflict within the Middle East that began on Feb. 28, 2026 has impeded oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz, with export volumes of crude and refined products currently at lower than 10 per cent of pre-conflict levels,” the IEA said in the discharge.
“That is forcing operators across the region to shut in or curtail a considerable amount of production.”
Earlier on Wednesday, a spokesperson from Iran’s military warned that the worldwide price of oil could reach US$200 per barrel because the conflict wages on.
Oil prices reached nearly $120 a barrel on Monday, before cooling down barely. As of publication, the value was slightly below $90, and up from about $64 in the times before the conflict began.
On Monday, Finance Minister François-Philippe Champagne told reporters there can be “further consultation” before taking motion to calm oil market concerns, including releasing strategic oil reserves.
“It’s very volatile,” he said. “I mean, what we’re all ensuring is that there can be a sufficient stock, obviously, to satisfy the demand.”
The IEA statement said it would “proceed to closely monitor global oil and gas markets” and supply further recommendations for governments in its organization as needed.
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