U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve Falls to Lowest Level Since 1982

Chart of strategic reserve levels since 1982, for context

https://en.macromicro.me/charts/41674/us-strategic-petroleum...

How quickly could it realistically be replenished if some kind of detente were reached and supply roughly returned to where it is was? Would replenishment contribute significantly to price pressure?

Global oil prices haven't skyrocketed so far thanks to China inverting the OPEC strategy of keeping prices up by destroying supply.

China stopped/reduced buying, used their large reserves, EVs and now accelerating EV trucks. And also coal to liquids.

Eventually, China may have to start buying and thats when the fun begins.

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/09/17/business/energy-environme...

https://oilprice.com/Energy/Coal/Chinas-Renewable-Boom-Masks...

China is now the world’s great oil power. Forget OPEC. The Chinese Communist Party calls the shots. https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=49238158

So seriously, what is the administrations intention here? They’ve used all the missiles and drained all the gas. Are they trying to get the U.S. invaded?

how about the oil from Venezuela?

And winter is coming

I am frankly a bit bewildered by all this. The US administration lies and lies. The Iranians lie. Doomers keep talking about how gas prices will skyrocket "in two weeks". Occasionally the "everything is fine, nothing to see here" folks wheel out some journalist saying there will be a peace deal any day now.

It's pretty difficult to figure out what the reality is besides "not good".

looks like gasoline will skyrocket very soon very badly..

The headline is hiding the fact that this was a fairly modest 400K bbl draw for the week.

Brought to you by the epestein war

They’ve ruined us.

Thos year’s drop is terrible, but we know the reason. Anybody know why the big drop in 2021-22?

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We can simply get rid of most oil - Just ONE square mile of batteries and a TOTAL of 100 x 100 square miles of Solar can power the entire USA 24/7.

It is because of world wide adoption of EVs that the fossil fuel demand has reduced and stabilized gas prices in the US.

See : https://ember-energy.org/latest-insights/batteries-have-unlo...