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PARIS, March 9 (Reuters) – The Group of Seven countries are considering releasing emergency oil stocks to address the Middle Eastern supply crisis, the International Energy Agency said on Monday, as oil prices surged to as high as almost $120 per barrel.
IEA member countries that are net oil importers are required to keep at least 90 days’ worth of oil imports in stock.
Here is how much each G7 country has in stock, though the amount that can be released per day is constrained by local infrastructure.
- The United States: 415.4 million barrels of crude oil in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, as of February 27, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Additionally, the U.S. has 439.3 million barrels of commercial reserves in private hands.
- Japan: 260 million barrels of crude oil in government-held stocks, out of about 470 million barrels of oil-equivalent in the country as of end-December. The government-held stockpile is equivalent to 146 days of imports, according to Japan’s Ministry for Natural Resources and Energy.
- An additional 180 million barrels of oil-equivalent fuels are held in private stockpiles (of which 90 million barrels are crude oil).
- Germany: 110 million barrels of crude oil and 67 million barrels’ worth of finished petroleum products are held by the government and can be released in a matter of days, according to Germany’s economy ministry.
- France: About 120 million barrels’ worth of crude and finished products at the end of 2024, the most recent data publicly available. About 97 million barrels of that is held by SAGESS, a government-mandated entity, with a breakdown of about 30% crude oil, 50% gasoil, 9% gasoline, 7.8% jet fuel, and some heating oil. Another 39 million barrels are held by the country’s oil operators.
- Italy: Required by law to have about 76 million barrels on hand, representing 90 days of Italy’s average net oil imports in 2024. Italy’s economy ministry did not respond to a request for comment on the actual figure.
- UK: About 38 million barrels of crude oil and 30 million barrels of refined products, as of February 26, according to the Department of Energy Security and Net Zero. The government meets its obligation by requiring industry to hold minimum levels of stock. As of July 2025, about 15% of stocks were either held on British soil for foreign countries’ stock requirements, or held overseas via the IEA ticket system as options to purchase foreign oil in a crisis.
- Canada does not have a strategic petroleum stockpile, and is not required to by the IEA as a net oil exporter. The world’s fourth-largest crude producer, Canada pumped more than 5 million barrels per day in December. Most of its exports go to the U.S.
Reporting by America Hernandez in Paris, Shadia Nasralla in London, Giuseppe Fonte in Milan, Christoph Steitz in Frankfurt. Editing by Mark Potter
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