Korea secures crude supply

South Korea said it has lined up enough crude to cover about 80% of normal imports and does not expect to tap state oil reserves through May. (koreatimes.co.kr) Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan made the statement on April 12, after saying the May supply outlook had improved by 10 percentage points from a week earlier. He said private companies were also holding voluntary inventories alongside government-managed stocks. (mk.co.kr) Kim said seven oil tankers were still delayed in the Strait of Hormuz and called their passage unpredictable. He said Seoul was preparing backup routes through Saudi Arabia’s Yanbu port on the Red Sea and could use the Cheonghae naval unit to escort Korean vessels. (koreatimes.co.kr) South Korea imports nearly all of its crude, so shipping disruptions hit quickly even when the country has large stockpiles. The International Energy Agency says member countries must hold emergency oil stocks equal to at least 90 days of net imports, and its latest data show Korea at 200 days, including 107 days of public stocks and 93 days of industry stocks. (iea.org) The government has tried to avoid an outright emergency draw by using a bridge system instead. On March 31, the industry ministry said refiners would be allowed to borrow crude from national reserves and return the same volume after replacement cargoes arrived. (msn.com) The pressure point is South Korea’s reliance on the Middle East. A Korea Institute for International Economic Policy report published April 1 said the Middle East share of Korea’s crude imports rose from 59.8% in 2021 to 71.9% in 2023, while the United States share climbed to 17.0% in 2025. (businesskorea.co.kr) Kim said Seoul had received assurances from Saudi Arabia that crude allocations for Korea would be prioritized. He also said talks on imports from Kazakhstan had made substantial progress after a diplomatic trip that included Saudi Arabia, Oman and Kazakhstan. (koreatimes.co.kr) The same supply shock is spilling into petrochemicals. Kim said naphtha supply should recover to around 80% in April and May, and the government set aside 869.1 billion won, about $585 million, in a supplementary budget for supply-chain stabilization measures. (koreatimes.co.kr) For now, Seoul is signaling that shortages can be managed with rerouted cargoes, commercial inventories and reserve swaps rather than a formal release of emergency barrels. That keeps the strategic stockpile in place if the shipping disruption lasts beyond May. (chosun.com)