Mideast, Iran, the Strait of Hormuz -- This Should Be Interesting

Link here.

Western powers this week readied a contingency plan to tap a record volume from emergency stockpiles to replace nearly all the Gulf oil that would be lost if Iran blocks the Strait of Hormuz, industry sources and diplomats told Reuters.

They said senior executives of the International Energy Agency (IEA), which advises 28 oil consuming countries, discussed on Thursday an existing plan to release up to 14 million barrels per day (bpd) of government-owned oil stored in the United States, Europe, Japan and other importers.

Action on this scale would be more than five times the size of the biggest release in the agency's history -- made in response to Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait.

NDIC Director, Lynn Helms, says if the strait is closed, he will authorize maximum production from all Bakken fields. Just joking. I have not seen any press report from Mr Helms regarding the situation in the Mideast. 

I assume The Dickinson Press will have a story about the dangers of railroad crossings in western North Dakota if the strait is closed and the US Navy starts firing Tomahawk missiles to provide top cover for Israeli long-range bombers headed for Iran.