Strategic Petroleum Reserve
The U.S. government's emergency crude stockpile, held in salt caverns along the Gulf Coast. Created 1975, first fill 1977. Drawdowns 2022–2023 took it to its lowest reading since the early 1980s.
Strategic Petroleum Reserve — weekly stocks
June 18, 2021 → June 5, 2026
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration — Weekly Petroleum Status Report, series WCSSTUS1. Units: million barrels. Updated Wednesdays ~10:30 ET.
Series ID PET.WCSSTUS1.W (EIA Weekly Petroleum Status Report). Weekly cadence; readings reflect end-of-week balance in millions of barrels of crude held in the four SPR sites (Bryan Mound, Big Hill, West Hackberry, Bayou Choctaw). Pre-2005 readings are from the fill era — the reserve was still being built out and is not directly comparable to post-fill readings as a measure of drawdown headroom.