Taiyo Oil Set to Receive Russia’s Sakhalin-2 Crude as Japan Shifts Oil Imports
Japan’s Oil Import Strategy Amid Global Tensions
Background: Suspension of Russian Oil Imports
TOKYO, May 2 (Reuters) - Japan's Taiyo Oil is set to receive a cargo of crude oil from Russia's Sakhalin-2 project, the Mainichi daily reported on Saturday, citing Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.
Japan has largely suspended purchases of oil from Russia after Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. A U.S. exemption for oil sales from the Sakhalin-2 project, which largely produces the liquefied natural gas, runs until June 18.
Alternative Oil Supplies and Geopolitical Shifts
The move comes as Japan seeks to secure alternative oil supplies after the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran has largely cut off imports from the Gulf, Tokyo's main oil source before the Middle East conflict broke out in late February.
Sakhalin-2 Project Stakeholders
Russian state gas company Gazprom is a controlling shareholder in the Sakhalin-2 oil and gas project, in which Japanese trading houses Mitsui and Mitsubishi also hold stakes.
Logistics and Additional Supply Sources
Mainichi, citing a METI official, said that cargo is set to arrive to the Ehime Prefecture in western Japan. Japan has also secured supplies from the U.S. and from destinations bypassing the largely closed Strait of Hormuz, among other sources.
Official Responses and Reporting
Taiyo Oil and METI did not immediately reply to Reuters request for a comment.
(Reporting by Katya Golubkova; Editing by Tom Hogue and Stephen Coates)
