A group of 12 European Union (EU) governments committed to bringing 20.5 million barrels of diesel to market by the end of January 2027 as part of a 42.6 million-barrel reserve release, amid tight fuel supplies.
The declaration lists Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal and Sweden as signatories. They signed it in Luxembourg on Oct. 29, placing the commitments within the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) March 2026 collective action. The document states an overall deadline but gives no country-level allocations or individual delivery dates.
An earlier EconoTimes account of the broader reserve plan said France planned to contribute 10 million barrels of diesel.
The declaration asks the European Commission to use its Oil Coordination Group for a monthly account of releases by quantity, product and timing. It also asks the Commission to monitor refinery output and promote capacity increases where feasible.
On Oct. 22, the Commission described diesel and jet fuel supplies as tight but said Europe had no physical shortage of either at that time. On Oct. 28, it opened a High-Level Dialogue with Europe’s refining industry to discuss energy security, production capacity and fuel supply.
On Oct. 15, the IEA Governing Board put releases under the March action at about 330 million barrels, with roughly 100 million still outstanding. The board said member plans included diesel releases exceeding 20 million barrels, to be made as soon as possible. The IEA says its March 11 action made 400 million barrels of emergency oil stocks available in response to supply disruptions tied to the Middle East conflict, marking its sixth collective action. Earlier IEA stock actions occurred in 1991, 2005, 2011 and twice in 2022.
The signatories say the reserve release will increase short-term supply. They separately call for cleaner energy and more diverse suppliers to strengthen longer-term energy security while safeguarding affordability and industrial competitiveness. The declaration schedules a progress review at the Energy Council on Dec. 10.
