(Finance) – Italy adheres to the IEA proposal – International Energy Agency of release part of the crude oil stocks – 60 million barrels equal to 4% of the total reserves held – for counteract the rise in prices of oil and gas after the invasion of Russia in Ukraine. Part of these reserves can be made available to Ukraine as aid on the energy front.
The Minister of Ecological Transition, Roberto Cingolanigave the green light for Italy’s voluntary membership to the proposal of the Agency based in Paris, which provides for the release of 2.04 million barrels, or 68.7 barrels per day for 30 days. The contribution of Italy will be equal to 277 thousand tons of crude oil, which, in addition to the standard quantity, also includes an additional 25% to cover the share of countries that have not joined.
Despite these decisions, oil continues to run and has now reached $ 119 a barrel: the Brent of the North Sea traded at $ 118.79 a barrel, up 5.19%, while the Light crude US rises by 4.61% to 115.7 dollars / barrel. And it is no better for the gas: the Henry Hub natural gas on the American circuit of Nymex increased by 3.19% to 4.914 dollars, while on the Dutch market the gas futures for April Dutch TTF delivery jumped by more than 18% to 116.96 dollars.
It’s clear that the intervention of the IEA was also made necessary by the absence of Opec +, which has remained silent since the Russian occupation of Ukraine began. But Moscow is one of the major participants in the expanded formulation of the cartel and together with Saudi Arabia determines the cartel’s policy with a delicate balance. At the last meeting, OPEC + confirmed its decision to gradually increase output by 400,000 barrels to meet the increased demand for energy, without doing more despite the overheating of prices.
(Photo: © Artem Egoro / 123RF)