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US Strategic Petroleum Reserve engineering
The gist
The US Strategic Petroleum Reserve fell to 286.6 million barrels, its lowest since November 1982.
It is an emergency layer behind a running supply system, not the whole supply.
How it unfolded
- 1973 -1974The Arab oil embargo exposed the economic damage a major oil-supply interruption can cause, leading to creation of the SPR.
- 1975Congress authorized the reserve.
- 2026 -02The US, in conjunction with Israel, attacked Iran, blocking the Strait of Hormuz and significantly disrupting global crude oil transport.