The U.S. has sold a 10.15 million-barrel batch of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) to eight companies, the Department of Energy said on Oct. 7.
First offered in September, the sale was part of President Joe Biden’s previously announced plan to sell 180 million barrels of oil from the reserve to fight high petroleum prices after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Companies receiving SPR oil were Equinor Marketing and Trading, Marathon Petroleum Supply and Trading LLC, Valero Marketing and Supply Company, Motiva Enterprises, Macquarie Commodities and Trading US LLC, Atlantic Trading & Marketing Inc., Phillips 66 Co., and Shell Trading Co.
The administration has now sold about 165 million barrels of the sale, the largest ever from the SPR, since May. Deliveries will take place in November.
The Biden administration has said more oil sales from the SPR could be undertaken in the wake of a decision this week by OPEC+, a group that includes Saudi Arabia and Russia, to cut oil output by 2 million bbl/d.
The drawdowns have pushed oil supply in the SPR down to the lowest level since July 1984, but it still holds more than required under an agreement with global oil consuming countries.
Recommended Reading
Deepwater Roundup 2024: Offshore Europe, Middle East
2024-04-16 - Part three of Hart Energy’s 2024 Deepwater Roundup takes a look at Europe and the Middle East. Aphrodite, Cyprus’ first offshore project looks to come online in 2027 and Phase 2 of TPAO-operated Sakarya Field looks to come onstream the following year.
Rystad: More Deepwater Wells to be Drilled in 2024
2024-02-29 - Upstream majors dive into deeper and frontier waters while exploration budgets for 2024 remain flat.
Deepwater Roundup 2024: Offshore Australasia, Surrounding Areas
2024-04-09 - Projects in Australia and Asia are progressing in part two of Hart Energy's 2024 Deepwater Roundup. Deepwater projects in Vietnam and Australia look to yield high reserves, while a project offshore Malaysia looks to will be developed by an solar panel powered FPSO.
Deepwater Roundup 2024: Offshore Africa
2024-04-02 - Offshore Africa, new projects are progressing, with a number of high-reserve offshore developments being planned in countries not typically known for deepwater activity, such as Phase 2 of the Baleine project on the Ivory Coast.
E&P Highlights: Jan. 29, 2024
2024-01-29 - Here’s a roundup of the latest E&P headlines, including activity at the Ichthys Field offshore Australia and new contract awards.