International Energy Agency to release record 400 MILLION oil barrels to tackle US-Iran war price spike

The 32-country alliance, which includes the UK, has said the latest release will make up around a third of its stockpile held for emergencies.

As part of the International Energy Agency's efforts, the UK Government has confirmed it will contribute 13.5 million barrels from its own stockpile.

Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said: "With this action, the UK is playing our part in working with our international allies to address the disruption in oil markets. The UK has strong and diverse energy supplies, and the price cap plays an important role in protecting energy bills until July.

"The way to protect families and businesses in the long run is to get off our dependency on global fossil fuel markets, and onto clean homegrown power which we control."

As part of the International Energy Agency's remit, the organisation has been responsible for maintaining global energy security since 1974.

It was originally founded following the oil embargo levied by Arab producers in response to US support for Israel during the 1973 Arab-Israeli war.

International Energy Agency executive director Fatih Birol said: "The conflict in the Middle East is having significant impacts on global oil and gas markets, with major implications for energy security, energy affordability, and the global economy for oil.

"I can now announce that IEA countries have unanimously decided to launch the largest ever release of emergency oil stocks in our agency’s history."

The executive director claimed the release is seeking to address the immediate impacts of the supply disruption as the conflict continues.

However, Mr Birol warned that tanker traffic must resume through the Strait of Hormuz to bring back stable oil and gas flows to the oil market.

The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow maritime corridor next to Iran’s coast that connects the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.

Around 20 per cent of the world's oil and gas supply flows through this corridor; however, tankers have not been able to travel through due to potential attacks from the Islamic Republic.

During PMQs, Prime Minister Keir Starmer claimed the Labour Government is attempting to do "everything we can to make sure those energy bills don't rise" in response to the crisis.

He added: "People will be really worried about the impact on them, and just to reassure households that the cap is in place until the end of June, until July.We are working with the sector and with others, and with allies, to do everything we can to make sure those energy bills don’t rise. So, we’re working round the clock on that."