South Korea is negotiating alternative crude oil routes

Energy crisis

South Korea is negotiating alternative crude oil routes

South Korea’s economy is heavily dependent on crude oil deliveries via the Strait of Hormuz. Now they want to secure alternative transport routes – including via the Red Sea.

With the Strait of Hormuz largely blocked, South Korea’s government has stepped up its diplomatic efforts to secure alternative oil routes. Among other things, special envoys will be sent to Saudi Arabia, Oman and Algeria, as South Korea’s official news agency Yonhap reported. To secure alternative transport routes, five oil tankers flying the Korean flag are to be relocated to the Red Sea to the Saudi Arabian port city of Yanbu. Saudi Arabia can transport and ship its oil via pipelines from the Persian Gulf to Yanbu.

Before the start of the Iran war, South Korea received around two thirds of its crude oil requirements via the Strait of Hormuz. The export-oriented economy is particularly hard hit by the current supply bottlenecks due to its high energy requirements. The government had already decided in mid-March to release parts of the strategic oil reserves in order to cushion short-term supply disruptions.