The emergency release will be coordinated by the International Energy Agency.
Storage tanks at the PCK petroleum refinery in Schwedt, Germany, on May 11, 2026. Sean Gallup/Getty Images
Group of Seven (G7) nations will release up to 100 million barrels of diesel and crude oil from their strategic reserves over the next four months.
French President Emmanuel Macron, head of the G7 leaders’ meeting on Oct. 2, confirmed that the supply injection will be coordinated by the International Energy Agency (IEA).
“Facing unprecedented volatility in oil markets—with surging prices threatening economic stability and the well-being of our citizens—we have agreed on decisive, coordinated measures to stabilize immediate energy supplies, shield households and businesses from price shocks, and strengthen the long-term resilience of global energy systems,” the G7 said in a joint statement on Oct. 2.
The G7 also agreed to make production rules more flexible, allowing refineries to operate at full capacity. Partner nations will avoid measures that would limit energy or petroleum trade among member countries.
President Donald Trump confirmed the emergency action on his social media platform.
“Europe has just agreed to release a massive amount of their heavily stocked Diesel Oil. The process will begin immediately,” the president said in a Truth Social post on Oct. 2.
This is the second time that the IEA has addressed the supply disruption triggered by the Iranian conflict. The 32-member group agreed to release about 400 million barrels of oil this past spring.
But the latest move to alleviate global diesel markets is a short-term solution, as worldwide consumption is between 28 million and 30 million barrels per day.
The decision comes as U.S. diesel prices have surged to record highs.
While diesel has eased slightly from its record $6.52 logged in late September, the fuel is still up 72 percent from a year ago, according to the American Automobile Association.
Global diesel markets have been upended by both the war in Iran and the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
Middle East tensions have affected oil and gas supplies traveling through the Strait of Hormuz, although shipments are returning to pre-war levels.
Kyiv has been targeting Russian refining infrastructure, forcing Moscow to impose and extend its diesel export ban.
The current U.S. administration has also discussed restrictions on diesel exports.
The president said he is considering the measure, but senior administration officials and economic observers warn it would likely backfire.
“We’re the largest diesel exporter in the world, but that same refinery that produces diesel also produces gasoline and jet fuel,” Energy Secretary Chris Wright said.
“So, if you can’t export the diesel that comes out of our refineries when you run out of places to store it, and you have to reduce U.S. refining, which would put upward pressure on gasoline prices and jet fuel prices.”
Instead, the White House has pushed European allies to bolster supply to help lower costs.
“Our European partners should accelerate delivery on their existing commitments and make additional supplies immediately available to address ongoing disruptions,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said a day earlier on X.
“American farmers, truckers, and businesses should not be left carrying the burden of a global diesel shortage. America is doing its part.”
Headline consumer and producer inflation has surged since the outbreak of war between Washington and Tehran.
The spike in international energy prices has yet to filter through the broader U.S. economy, but economists fear surging fuel costs could trigger second- and third-order inflation effects.
The concern was big enough to push the Federal Reserve to deliver its first interest rate hike in more than three years in September.
The move followed actions by the European Central Bank early last month, which raised a trio of key interest rates by a quarter point as insurance.
Beth Ann Bovino, chief U.S. economist at U.S. Bank and head of the American Bankers Association’s Economic Advisory Committee, thinks diesel price pressures could bleed into core inflation (excluding energy and food categories).
“Businesses are kind of almost … testing the waters of what they can get through without losing the customer,” Bovino told The Epoch Times during an American Bankers Association virtual event on Sept. 23.
Crude oil prices fell after the news surfaced.
The international Brent benchmark declined more than 3 percent to below $100 per barrel in overseas trading.
U.S. oil prices—West Texas Intermediate—also fell 4 percent to below $89 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.