Trump pushed, G7 released up to 100 million barrels of fuel in a day

As late as Thursday, EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen told reporters that releasing strategic diesel stocks was one option, and that member states were still coordinating. Less than a day later, the decision had already been made.

US President Donald Trump told European allies, above all Germany and France, to release their strategic diesel reserves. According to news agency reports, Washington demanded that the European Union release around 120 million 159-litre barrels of diesel within six months, which is more than a third of total European stocks. In the background was also a threat that the US could restrict its own diesel exports, which would push prices in Europe up even further.

US Energy Secretary Chris Wright accompanied the demand with these words:

"It is time for a coordinated release of diesel fuel stocks, as we approach the harvest season and the winter heating oil season." (translated)

US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer was even more direct, saying:

"We know France, Germany and Italy are sitting on reserves ... Of course, I won't put words in their mouths, but I think they would like to have a shared vision on how to get as much diesel as possible onto the market." (translated)

Prices, meanwhile, had already said a lot on their own. In Germany the average diesel price on Thursday was €2.409 per litre, and US diesel prices have risen by more than 70 percent since the start of the war in the Middle East. According to Goldman Sachs, European members of the OECD held around 190 million barrels of diesel in stocks at the end of June.

The European Commission initially responded to the pressure with restraint. Commissioner Jørgensen said:

"We are discussing with all members of the International Energy Agency, not only with the US, when the right time would be to release stocks, as this is one of the options we have. We have already used it and we will probably use it again." (translated)

Commission spokesperson Anna-Kaisa Itkonen at the same time rejected the US threat of an export ban: "A ban would benefit no one. It would undermine our trust in the US as a reliable partner." French Minister for International Trade Nicolas Forissier said he could not imagine a US export ban at all, while the German Ministry of Economy said the International Energy Agency (IEA) had not yet called on them to release stocks.

The debate ended the same day it began. French President Emmanuel Macron convened an extraordinary call of G7 leaders, after which it was announced that the states would release up to 100 million barrels of oil and diesel fuel from strategic reserves. The release will begin immediately and last four months, and a significant part of the diesel is expected to reach the market within the first twenty days. In a joint statement they wrote:

"Faced with unprecedented volatility in oil markets, where steeply rising prices threaten the economic stability and prosperity of our citizens, we have agreed on decisive and coordinated measures to stabilise the immediate energy supply." (translated)

The G7 states also agreed not to impose export bans on diesel on one another, and called on other producers to do the same. That also removed the threat Trump had been waving over Europe for a week. The US president announced the deal on the Truth Social network, saying that European states had agreed to immediately release a huge quantity of diesel onto the market.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen welcomed the decision with these words:

"We welcome the G7 decision not to impose any export bans on allies, and the continued solidarity among partners." (translated)

European Council President Antonio Costa announced that EU leaders will discuss the high cost of energy at a summit on 15 and 16 October, where they are also expected to talk about reducing dependence on fossil fuels. A few days passed between the US demand and the G7 decision, and less than a day between the commissioner's cautious statement that a release was merely one option and the decision itself.