The number
The US Strategic Petroleum Reserve holds 374.2 million barrels of crude across four salt-dome sites (Bryan Mound, Big Hill, West Hackberry, Bayou Choctaw). That is 51% of the 727 Mbbl statutory capacity authorized by Congress.
What that buys you
The SPR exists to be drawn at a maximum sustainable rate of ~4.4 mb/d. Against a hypothetical 19.5 mb/d gross US demand disruption — the worst-case parameter the Department of Energy uses — the current inventory covers roughly 19.2 days with no other policy intervention. That is below the 30-day minimum that the IEA recommends for member-country net-import equivalents.
Refill ambitions vs. price reality
The Biden-era refill commitments contemplated repurchases when WTI traded under $70/bbl. With WTI currently near $100/bbl, refill purchases are uneconomical at the previously stated trigger price. The administration has signaled it will not chase the market upward.
What we are watching
- The next OPEC+ JMMC ministerial in early June — production guidance moves the SPR refill arithmetic
- US commercial crude stocks (currently 445 Mbbl) — the cushion the SPR doesn't have to absorb alone
- Atlantic hurricane forecast season — Gulf Coast refinery shutdowns are the disruption mode most likely to draw the SPR
Source: EIA Open Data v2, series WCSSTUS1 (Ending Stocks SPR).