U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve Falls To Its Lowest Level In More Than Four Decades As Hormuz Strait Remains Closed

The Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) fell to its lowest level in more than 40 years as the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed. Data from the Department of Energy showed that the SPR stood below 300 million barrels last week, the lowest since January 1983. It was at about 415 million barrels before the war with Iran bean in late February and has a maximum authorized capacity of 714 million barrels. The Trump administration had ordered the release of 172 million barrels in March as the war continued and the Strait of Hormuz remained closed. A spokesperson for the DoE told CNBC that the minimum amount needed to operate the SPR is 70 million barrels.