Korea National Oil Corp. (KNOC) has signed an international joint stockpiling agreement to store 5.3 million barrels of crude oil from Saudi Arabia’s state oil company Aramco in Korea.
On the occasion of President Yoon Suk-yeol’s visit to Saudi Arabia, KNOC announced on Oct. 22 that it signed the crude oil joint stockpiling agreement with Aramco as part of strengthening energy cooperation at the Korea-Saudi Arabia Investment Forum in Riyadh on Oct. 22 (local time).
Under the agreement, KNOC will import 5.3 million barrels of Aramco’s crude oil into the country and store it at its Ulsan stockpile base. During peacetime, Aramco will store crude oil at its Ulsan stockpile in Korea and sell it to Korea and other countries. Korea will have priority access to up to 5.3 million barrels of Aramco crude in the event of an oil supply emergency.
KNOC continues to pursue international joint stockpiling projects with major Middle Eastern oil producers. During President Yoon’s state visit to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in January, KNOC signed an international joint stockpile agreement to secure priority purchase rights to four million barrels of oil.
Following the Russian-Ukrainian war, the armed conflict between the Palestinian militant group Hamas and Israel has intensified, increasing Korea’s need to strengthen energy security, as Korea is more than 90 percent dependent on energy imports.
The Korean government currently has a strategic oil reserve of 96 million barrels. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), Korea can use the amount for more than 120 days.