PARIS, March 11 (Bernama-dpa) -- The 32 member countries of the International Energy Agency (IEA) will hold an emergency meeting later Tuesday amid tight conditions in global oil markets, German Press Agency (dpa) reported.
The meeting will assess "the current security of supply and market conditions," which will help determine whether member countries should release strategic oil reserves, the agency said.
IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol convened the talks with governments of the agency's member states.
Earlier Tuesday, the IEA had hosted a meeting of G7 energy ministers.
"In oil markets, conditions have deteriorated in recent days," Birol said in a statement after those talks.
"In addition to the challenges of transit through the Strait of Hormuz, a substantial amount of oil production has been curtailed. This is creating significant and growing risks for the market."
"We discussed all the available options, including making IEA emergency oil stocks available to the market."
The IEA's 32 members hold about 1.2 billion barrels of emergency oil reserves, the agency said. In addition, the Paris-based organisation estimates that industry stocks amount to another 600 million barrels.
Countries release strategic oil reserves during crises to stabilise markets or respond to supply shortages. The measure is rarely used.
Since its founding more than 50 years ago, the IEA says coordinated releases have occurred five times.
-- BERNAMA-dpa
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