Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent outlined a dual-track emergency oil supply plan Thursday that targets both Iranian crude oil stranded on tankers in international waters and additional releases from the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve. Bessent said the two-pronged approach is designed to address the global oil supply crisis caused by Iran’s Strait of Hormuz closure, which has driven prices above $100 per barrel.
Iran’s Hormuz blockade has removed an estimated 10 to 14 million barrels of daily supply from global markets for close to two weeks. The sustained price surge has created economic challenges across multiple regions and has placed intense pressure on the administration to find effective and rapid supply-side solutions.
Bessent confirmed that approximately 140 million barrels of Iranian crude are stranded on tankers in international waters, oil originally heading toward Chinese buyers. A targeted temporary sanctions waiver could redirect this oil to global markets, providing an estimated two-week supply bridge while the US continues its campaign to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
The additional Strategic Petroleum Reserve release, which will go beyond the 400 million barrel G7 coordinated commitment, is intended to further supplement global supply. The plan builds on a previous Treasury waiver for Russian oil that added approximately 130 million barrels to world supply, while the administration maintains its firm stance against financial market intervention.
Analysts and compliance experts raised concerns about the Iranian oil component of the plan. They warned that allowing Iranian oil revenues to flow to Tehran, regardless of the waiver’s scope, would provide the regime with financial resources for military and proxy activities. Critics described the Iranian crude component as strategically problematic, while acknowledging that the Strategic Petroleum Reserve component is a more straightforward and less controversial supply-side measure.