Estonia released 9% of fuel reserves amid U.S.-Iran conflict
The Estonian Stockpiling Agency has so far released about 9% of its national fuel reserves to cushion potential supply disruptions caused by the U.S.–Iran war, officials said.
In March, the Estonian government decided to release part of the country's strategic liquid fuel reserves to contribute to the International Energy Agency's (IEA) joint action to stabilize the global fuel market and to prevent possible supply disruptions caused by the Middle East conflict.
"Estonia's proportional share in the total volume of fuel released as a solidarity measure amounts to up to 33,000 tons of liquid fuel, or about 12 percent of the national reserves, which corresponds to approximately 11 days of average domestic motor fuel consumption," said Martin Jaško, head of communications at the Stockpiling Agency.
As part of the joint action, Estonia has so far released a total of 25,000 tons of fuel to the market, or nine percent of its liquid fuel reserves.
"Reserves of both gasoline and jet fuel have been partially used in varying amounts," Jaško added.
Normally, the reserves center maintains enough fuel to last Estonia for 90 days. However, the portion used during this latest crisis will not be replenished immediately. Jaško explained that this will happen once markets have stabilized.
The Strait of Hormuz — which carried about one-fifth of the world's oil and gas until the Middle East conflict began — has been closed for more than three months. As a result, millions of barrels of oil and gas have disappeared from global supply.
The United States and Iran have reached a preliminary agreement to end the war and plan to sign a memorandum of understanding in Switzerland on Friday outlining their joint intentions.
If the conflict ends, it should help stabilize the fuel market, but recovery will take time, as damaged energy infrastructure will need repairs, and as normal oil flows from the Persian Gulf resume, countries will begin rebuilding their depleted reserves.
The role of the Stockpiling Agency is to ensure that Estonia has sufficient strategic stockpiles, which in terms of fuel means maintaining adequate supplies of gasoline, diesel, natural gas, and jet fuel.
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Editor: Karin Koppel, Argo Ideon
