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Strategic Petroleum Reserve drops below 300 million barrels, experts warn salt cavern structural damage
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The US Strategic Petroleum Reserve has fallen below 300 million barrels for the first time since its initial fill in the early 1980s, with petroleum engineering experts warning that repeated drawdown cycles are deforming the underground salt caverns and increasing the risk of structural collapse.
The SPR was engineered for five full drawdowns over its lifespan but has undergone dozens of cycles in 40 years, and the current release will leave it at roughly 243 million barrels, below the 250 to 300 million barrel practical operational floor identified by experts. Below that floor, thinning oil layers allow rising sludge to reach upper intakes, reducing pump speed and increasing geological risk, which means the reserve may not function as designed when next called upon.
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The current release of 172 million barrels will leave the SPR at approximately 243 million barrels, below the 250 to 300 million barrel practical operational floor cited by Texas A&M professor Siddharth Misra.
The reserve was designed for five full drawdowns but has undergone dozens of cycles over 40 years, causing severe cavern deformation, accelerated salt falls from ceilings, and weakened structural integrity.
The Department of Energy rejects collapse concerns, with spokesman Ben Dietderich stating the caverns are always full and only the oil-to-water ratio changes.
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