Cushing is holding less crude than at any week since 2018.
Tanks at the WTI delivery point closed the week at 18.6 million barrels, 1.4 million below the level the trade treats as tank bottoms.
EIA print published 29 July 2026 · Read written 3 August 2026. Figures as published that week.
Crude in tank
18.6 M bbl
Week ending 24 Jul 2026
Change on the week
−0.8 M bbl
Second draw in a row
Tanks filled
19.0%
Of 98 million bbl capacity
Against tank bottoms
−1.4 M bbl
Floor taken at 20 million
Our satellite read, as published that week
We measure 23.6 million barrels in tank on 1 August: 24.1% of capacity, and 5.0 million above the 24 July print. That pass falls inside the week ending 7 August, which the EIA publishes on 12 August. The print before it, for the week ending 31 July, lands on 5 August. Our 20 July read had put the hub at 20.6 million; the 24 July print came in 2.0 million below it.
23.6 M bbl
80% band 21.8 to 25.8
Satellite estimate · 1 Aug 2026
The read
Tank bottoms are now a pricing input, not a footnote
Nine weeks ago Cushing held 23.0 million barrels. It now holds 18.6 million, a 4.4 million draw over that span.
Our 1 August satellite read puts the hub back above that line, 5.0 million clear of the 24 July print. Whether the official series follows is the question for the next two prints.