Chief Secretary Kang Hoon-sik: "Secured an Additional 273 Million Barrels of Crude Oil and 2.1 Million Tons of Naphtha"

Kang Hoon-sik: "Crude Oil Supply Secured for Over Three Months"

The Blue House announced on April 15 that it has secured an additional 273 million barrels of crude oil and 2.1 million tons of naphtha by visiting four major energy-supplying countries by the end of this year.

Kang Hoon-sik, Chief Presidential Secretary, stated in a briefing at Chunchugwan that he visited a total of four countries—Kazakhstan, Oman, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar—where these agreements were reached. Specifically, 18 million barrels of crude oil were secured from Kazakhstan; 5 million barrels of crude oil and 1.6 million tons of naphtha from Oman; and 250 million barrels of crude oil and 500,000 tons of naphtha from Saudi Arabia. In Qatar, the delegation received assurances for the uninterrupted export of liquefied natural gas (LNG).

Yonhap News Agency

Kang explained, “Based on last year’s consumption, 273 million barrels of crude oil is enough to cover more than three months of use under normal economic conditions, without any emergency measures. The 2.1 million tons of naphtha corresponds to about one month’s worth of imports based on last year’s figures.” He added, “The crude oil and naphtha secured this time will be sourced from alternative suppliers not affected by the Strait of Hormuz blockade, so we believe they will make a direct and substantial contribution to stabilizing domestic supply.”

Earlier, Kang visited major energy-supplying countries as the President’s Special Envoy for Strategic Economic Cooperation from April 7 to 14. He led a special delegation composed of officials from the Blue House, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Korea National Oil Corporation, and energy-related companies, and met with top-level officials in each country. President Lee Jaemyung delivered personal letters to the heads of state through the delegation, proposing that the countries work together with collective wisdom to overcome the energy security crisis.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.