BRUSSELS: The EU does not foresee a shortage of oil because of its forthcoming ban on shipments of crude from Iran and will tap stockpiles of fuel only if there is a "serious disruption," an EU commission spokeswoman said on Wednesday.
That perspective differs from the view in Washington, which is considering a release of oil from strategic reserves to stem a surge in gasoline prices. The EU statement also appears to rule out a coordinated release of stocks held by the International Energy Agency (IEA).
The EU will ban all imports of Iranian crude from July 1. Many of Iran's big customers on the continent have already cut back sharply or stopped buying altogether in the run-up to the embargo.
"EU stocks are to be used in case of a serious disruption," the spokeswoman said. "We don't have a situation of shortage. EU member states either stopped purchasing oil from Iran, (while) others are reducing their purchases."
In recent weeks, the disruption to Tehran's crude and increased tension between the West and Iran over its nuclear programme have pushed oil toward a 10-month high of $125.50 a barrel, putting pressure on the administration of President Barack Obama to release oil from strategic tanks.
"We're very concerned about what's happening in Iran. So we're working with the IEA," Energy Secretary Steven Chu said on Tuesday.
Last year the United States and other members of the IEA coordinated a release of 60 million barrels of oil stocks in response to the Libyan disruption.
But in this case, the German government has also said it has no plans to release strategic oil reserves to combat rising oil prices.
"By law, the oil reserves can only be released in the event of a disruption of the oil supplies, and there is nothing of the kind at the moment," a spokeswoman for the Economy Ministry said last week.
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