New Delhi: India on Wednesday welcomed the decision by the International Energy Agency (IEA) to release emergency oil stocks to stabilise global markets amid supply disruptions triggered by the conflict in the Middle East. In a statement, the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas said India, as an associate member of the agency, supports the coordinated international response.
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“India, as an Associate Member of the International Energy Agency (IEA) and an active participant in international energy cooperation, welcomes the IEA’s decision to release emergency oil stocks amid the prevailing supply disruptions,” the ministry said. The government added that it is closely tracking developments in global energy markets as tensions in West Asia affect oil flows.
“The Government of India is closely monitoring the evolving situation in global energy markets, particularly in the Middle East,” the statement said. It added that New Delhi stands ready to respond if required.
“India stands ready to take appropriate measures, as necessary, to support global market stability in alignment with the efforts of the International Energy Agency,” said the statement.
Earlier on Wednesday, the IEA said its 32 member countries had unanimously agreed to release 400 million barrels of oil from emergency reserves to address supply disruptions caused by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. The decision followed an extraordinary meeting of member governments convened by IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol to assess market conditions and consider emergency response options.
“The oil market challenges we are facing are unprecedented in scale, therefore I am very glad that IEA Member countries have responded with an emergency collective action of unprecedented size,” Birol said.
“Oil markets are global so the response to major disruptions needs to be global too. Energy security is the founding mandate of the IEA, and I am pleased that IEA Members are showing strong solidarity in taking decisive action together.”
The emergency oil will be made available to the market over a timeframe determined by each member country’s national circumstances, with some governments also expected to implement additional measures.
According to the IEA, the conflict that began on February 28 has severely disrupted oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, a critical artery for global energy trade.
Export volumes of crude and refined products through the strait are currently less than 10 percent of pre-conflict levels, forcing operators across the region to shut in or curtail significant production.
In 2025, around 20 million barrels per day of crude oil and petroleum products transited the Strait of Hormuz, accounting for roughly 25 percent of global seaborne oil trade. Options for rerouting supplies around the chokepoint remain limited, heightening concerns about sustained disruptions to global oil markets.
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IEA members collectively hold over 1.2 billion barrels of emergency government stockpiles, with a further 600 million barrels of industry stocks maintained under government obligation. The current coordinated release marks the sixth collective stock release in the agency’s history since its creation in 1974.
Previous emergency actions were undertaken in 1991, 2005, 2011, and twice in 2022 in response to major supply disruptions affecting global energy markets.
