{"id":21092,"date":"2026-03-12T17:17:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-12T17:17:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/2026\/03\/12\/are-the-worlds-total-emergency-oil-reserves-really-only-enough-for-four-days-supply\/"},"modified":"2026-03-12T17:17:00","modified_gmt":"2026-03-12T17:17:00","slug":"are-the-worlds-total-emergency-oil-reserves-really-only-enough-for-four-days-supply","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/ur\/2026\/03\/12\/are-the-worlds-total-emergency-oil-reserves-really-only-enough-for-four-days-supply\/","title":{"rendered":"Are the world&#8217;s total emergency oil reserves really only enough for four days&#8217; supply?"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<p>When the International Energy Agency announced the largest emergency release of oil reserves in history, world leaders held a press conference and spoke of unprecedented unity, calling it a major collective action. It sounded incredible. It sounded like a solution. Then someone did the math.<\/p>\n<p><div class=\"ast-oembed-container \" style=\"height: 100%;\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"The World Burns 103M Barrels A Day. The IEA Released 400M. Can You Do The Math? Statecraft Ep 306\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/F8_fVWYkAVI?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<p> <\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Global oil demand amounts to 103 million barrels per day. The IEA released a total of 400 million barrels. Divided one by one, you get roughly 4 days&#8217; worth of global supply. 4 days. That is a large-scale rescue operation. That&#8217;s a plan announced with a straight face and prepared statement as oil prices fell briefly during the afternoon and then rose shortly thereafter.<\/p>\n<p><button class=\"readmoreAction\">Read full article<svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" aria-label=\"arrow\" height=\"10\" width=\"12\" class=\"tbl-read-more-button-arrow\" viewbox=\"0 0 8 6\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6.85381 0.203525L3.99181 3.06553L1.12981 0.203525C1.00407 0.0820867 0.835672 0.0148905 0.660874 0.0164095C0.486076 0.0179284 0.318868 0.088041 0.195262 0.211646C0.0716568 0.335252 0.00154415 0.50246 2.52017e-05 0.677258C-0.00149374 0.852056 0.0657025 1.02046 0.187141 1.14619L3.52047 4.47953C3.64549 4.60451 3.81503 4.67472 3.99181 4.67472C4.16858 4.67472 4.33812 4.60451 4.46314 4.47953L7.79647 1.14619C7.86015 1.08469 7.91094 1.01113 7.94588 0.929795C7.98081 0.848459 7.99921 0.760979 7.99997 0.67246C8.00074 0.58394 7.98388 0.496154 7.95036 0.414223C7.91683 0.332292 7.86733 0.257857 7.80474 0.195262C7.74214 0.132667 7.66771 0.083165 7.58578 0.0496444C7.50385 0.0161238 7.41606 -0.00074404 7.32754 2.51711e-05C7.23902 0.000794382 7.15154 0.0191852 7.0702 0.0541246C6.98887 0.0890639 6.91531 0.139852 6.85381 0.203525Z\" fill=\"#fff\"\/><\/svg><\/button><\/p>\n<p>The crisis began when the United States and Israel attacked Iran. Iran responded by taking one step that guaranteed maximum suffering to the maximum number of people. The Strait of Hormuz was closed.<\/p>\n<p>The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow strait between Iran and Oman. About 20 million barrels of crude oil and petroleum products pass through here every day, accounting for about a fifth of the planet&#8217;s total oil supply. There are no realistic alternative routes. The Cape of Good Hope adds 20 days to the voyage. A pipeline of the size needed does not exist. When Iran stepped on that particular hose, every factory, every aircraft, every truck, every power plant on the planet felt it immediately.<\/p>\n<p>As the conflict intensified, the price of crude oil soared to $120 per barrel in a matter of days. They settled around $100 after the IEA announcement, and after a while traders looked at the actual numbers, looked at the Strait of Hormuz, and saw the Iranian Revolutionary Guard&#8217;s statement that not a liter of oil would pass through, immediately pushing prices higher. On March 12, the price of Brent crude oil was about $98 per barrel, up $20 in just one month.<\/p>\n<p>Of course, the 400 million barrels released will not hit the market all at once. It will take 120 days to release the 172 million barrels the United States has donated from its strategic oil reserves. Japan&#8217;s 80 million barrels began production on March 16. Europe and Korea contribute the remainder over several weeks and months. At a release rate of approximately 1 to 2 million barrels per day, IEA injections cover between 10 and 20 percent of the supply gap for a limited period of time. Capital Economics makes it clear: Preliminary release only works if the dispute ends quickly.<\/p>\n<p>If the war continues for a month, the world will lose about 350 million barrels of supply. The IEA release barely addresses this. After that, there will be nothing more to disclose.<\/p>\n<p>Gulf producers have made the situation significantly worse. Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Iraq deepened supply cuts as their storage tanks were full of oil that could not be shipped anywhere. If oil cannot be exported, production will eventually cease. The UAE has shut its largest oil refinery as a precautionary measure following drone attacks in the region. More than 4 million barrels per day of refining capacity across the Gulf is currently at risk.<\/p>\n<p>Those who have no say in any of this will have the greatest consequences. Japan imports 70% of its oil through the Strait of Hormuz. India imports more than 80% of its oil needs from the Gulf. Sub-Saharan Africa relies on LPG transiting the Strait as its primary cooking fuel. The IMF estimates that every $10 per barrel of sustained oil price rises reduces global GDP by 0.5 to 1 percent each quarter. Oil rose $20 in two weeks.<\/p>\n<p>Iran&#8217;s calculation is simple. Every week the war continues and gasoline prices rise in the United States. There is inflation every week. Political capital erodes every week. For Iran, survival means victory.<\/p>\n<p>IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol finally said the quiet part loudly. The most important thing for market stability is not reserves. The goal is to reopen the strait. There is only one way to truly solve this problem. Until that happens, the world runs on emergency fuel and finger pointing.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; end<\/p>\n<div class=\"authors__container\">\n<div class=\"authors__by\">\n<p>Posted by: <\/p>\n<p>India Today Global <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"published__on\">\n<p>Posted on: <\/p>\n<p>Mar 12, 2026 22:47 IST<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>tune the frequency<\/p>\n<p><iframe scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"648\" height=\"365\" src=\"https:\/\/podcasts.indiatoday.in\/news\/news-at-7\/1358209\" class=\"podcast-multy-video-iframe\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When the International Energy Agency announced the largest emergency release of oil reserves in history, world leaders held a press conference and spoke of unprecedented unity, calling it a major collective action. It sounded incredible. It sounded like a solution. Then someone did the math. Global oil demand amounts to 103 million barrels per day. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[51746,51737,51738,51739,51736,51740,51752,51745,51747,49495,51741,51743,51731,51742,51744,51750,51733,51231,51751,51749,49629,51748,51753,51734,49957,51732,51735],"class_list":["post-21092","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blog","tag-first-crude-oil-mumbai","tag-fuel-price-today","tag-fuel-price-today-video","tag-fuel-price-update-today","tag-fuel-price-war","tag-fuel-prices-2026","tag-in-other-words","tag-indian-tanker-hormuz","tag-iran-allows-indian-oil-tankers","tag-iran-american-war","tag-iran-american-war-video","tag-iran-american-war-video-update","tag-iran-vs-us","tag-iran-us-war-updates","tag-iran-us-war-video-update","tag-jaishankar-iran-summit","tag-oil-market","tag-oil-price","tag-oil-reserves","tag-shenlong-tanker-arrives","tag-strait-of-hormuz","tag-strait-of-hormuz-crisis","tag-strategic-oil-reserves","tag-todays-oil-price","tag-us-iran-war","tag-us-vs-iran","tag-us-vs-iran-war"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/ur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21092","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/ur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/ur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/ur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/ur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=21092"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/ur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21092\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/ur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=21092"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/ur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=21092"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/umang.pk\/ur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=21092"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}