The U.S. Secretary of Energy said that it is possible to release the strategic petroleum reserve again, but the likelihood is very low.

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After Middle East hostilities continued to escalate last week, pushing the international crude oil benchmark Brent futures above $100, U.S. energy policy has entered “emergency mode.” Energy Secretary Wright emphasized that the government has tools to deal with the impact of rising oil prices, while also trying to downplay its effects.

According to CCTV News, on Monday the 23rd local time, U.S. Energy Secretary Wright stated that the Strategic Petroleum Reserve could be released again, but he considered the possibility very low.

Speaking at the CERAWeek energy conference in Houston, Wright said that although oil prices have surged, they have not yet reached levels that trigger “demand destruction.” The government is mitigating market shocks by releasing the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) and urging the industry to speed up production increases.

Wright revealed that the U.S. has started to release 1 to 1.5 million barrels per day from the SPR, which could be expanded to as much as 3 million barrels per day if necessary to stabilize global supply chains, particularly for Asian refiners hit hardest by the disruptions.

Several media outlets pointed out that, against the backdrop of U.S.–Iran conflicts causing shipping delays in the Strait of Hormuz and pressuring global energy supplies, the U.S. move to use strategic reserves aims to “suppress oil prices and stabilize market expectations.” However, oil prices still face the risk of volatile highs in the short term.

During early U.S. stock trading on Monday, according to CCTV News, President Trump told the media that the U.S. and Iran had a “very good and fruitful” dialogue in the past two days and that the U.S. would “delay by five days” its strike on Iranian power stations. After Trump revealed this, Brent, which was above $110, quickly fell below $100 and has since failed to climb back above that threshold.

Oil Prices Have Not Triggered “Demand Destruction”; Policy Still Focused on Stable Supply

On Monday, Wright made it clear that although Brent has recently broken the $100/barrel mark, it is not yet high enough to significantly curb consumer demand; “demand destruction” has not occurred.

This judgment sends out two key signals:

Policy tolerance remains: The U.S. government believes the current price level is high, but still within economically bearable limits.
Intervention still supply-side oriented: Rather than curbing demand, the focus is to stabilize prices by increasing supply.

In terms of market impact, this means oil prices lack a strong “policy crackdown” signal in the short term, so the price center may remain at a high, volatile level rather than drop quickly.

Strategic Petroleum Reserve as Core Tool, but Release Pace Is Controllable

Wright emphasized that the U.S. has begun to use the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and is able to further increase the release if needed, starting with about 1 to 1.5 million barrels per day and possibly rising to 3 million barrels per day at most.

Previously, the U.S. had offered about 45.2 million barrels of reserve crude as part of the initial release to various energy firms.

At the same time, the policy tone has become more cautious. Various media, citing Wright’s remarks, noted that the U.S. government is unlikely to continue large-scale additional releases, with the SPR seen more as a “short-term buffer” instead of a long-term price suppression tool.

This implies that: releasing the SPR can ease supply tensions in the short term and temporarily pressure oil prices, but mid-to-long-term support for prices remains, since government reserves are limited and cannot substitute for supply in the long term.

Calls for Oil & Gas Industry to Boost Production and Reinforce “Energy Dominance” Strategy

Apart from using reserves, Wright’s core policy orientation remains on expanding supply.

In meetings with energy executives, he urged the industry to:

Increase U.S. domestic oil & gas production
Accelerate the restoration and expansion of global supply capacity
Take advantage of the current high-price window to step up investment and output

This stance continues the Trump administration’s “energy dominance” strategy, that is, enhancing U.S. fossil fuel production to reduce reliance on external sources and gain greater pricing power in the global energy market.

For the market, this signal typically means: a mid- to long-term expectation of improved supply, negative for crude oil prices, but hard to achieve quickly in the short term, so oil prices remain supported at elevated levels.

Hormuz Disruption Deemed “Temporary”, Policy Seeks to Avoid Overreaction

Regarding the market’s key risk—the Strait of Hormuz disruption—Wright called the impact “temporary.”

This judgment carries two implications:

Avoiding policy panic to prevent further irrational price spikes
Providing grounds for only limited reserve releases, meaning there’s no need to enter a “full emergency state”

In reality, about 20% of global oil & gas transport relies on this channel, so a prolonged blockade would have a far-reaching impact on supply.

Thus, the market response is split:

Policy outlook: Shock is manageable → suppresses a further oil price surge
Geopolitical risk: High uncertainty → offers a risk premium support.

Gasoline Prices to Remain High, Political Pressure Rising

Wright also warned on Monday that American consumers may have to bear the burden of high oil prices for “several weeks,” which is a potential risk for the upcoming mid-term elections.

Domestic U.S. fuel prices are already on the rise, turning energy issues into a renewed political focal point.

This also explains the current policy mix:

Short-term: Release SPR, stabilize market
Mid-term: Promote production increase, restore supply
Political level: Prevent runaway oil prices from hitting election prospects

Global Coordinated Release and Supply Reconstruction Advancing

It’s important to note, the U.S. is not acting alone.

On the Friday before last, the International Energy Agency (IEA) announced that 32 IEA member countries had agreed to coordinate the release of a total of 400 million barrels of strategic reserves, making it the largest collective release in IEA history. On the same day, the U.S. Department of Energy confirmed that, as part of the IEA-led global initiative, the U.S. plans to release 172 million barrels from its SPR to counter the oil price surge triggered by U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran.

Besides the U.S., several other IEA members will also release reserves, and the U.S. is also exploring alternative supply sources such as Venezuela.

This means the global energy system is entering a “rebalancing phase”: traditional Middle East supply is disturbed; the western hemisphere and reserves temporarily fill the gap; and energy trade patterns are undergoing structural shifts.

Risk Warning and DisclaimerThe market carries risk, and investments should be approached with caution. This article does not constitute individual investment advice and does not take into account any particular user’s special investment objectives, financial situation, or needs. Users should consider if any opinion, perspective, or conclusion in this article fits their particular circumstances. Investments are made at one’s own risk. ```