Korea National Oil Corporation President Kim Dong-seop Inspects Oil Stockpile Base Readiness and On-site Safety Management in Preparation for Middle East Crisis Expansion

Kim Dong-seop, President of Korea National Oil Corporation, recently visited the Guri Oil Storage Base on the 19th to inspect the readiness for strategic oil release and the implementation status of on-site safety management in preparation for the escalating crisis situation in the Middle East.

As part of on-site safety management, Kim Dong-seop, President of the Korea National Oil Corporation (third from the left), inspected the loading and unloading facilities at the Guri storage base on the 19th.

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Amid the Israel-Hamas war, concerns about the escalation of conflict in the Middle East are increasing due to recent attacks on ships by the Houthi rebels in the Red Sea area and the subsequent U.S. retaliations. This has raised fears of a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial oil transportation route for Middle Eastern oil-producing countries.

Since the Strait of Hormuz accounts for 67% of domestic oil transportation, a blockade is expected to disrupt the domestic oil supply. Accordingly, the Korea National Oil Corporation is preparing a readiness posture for the release of strategic oil reserves.

On this day, President Kim Dong-seop toured the storage facilities and loading/unloading facilities at the Guri Oil Storage Base, thoroughly inspecting the readiness for oil release to ensure that strategic oil reserve shipments can proceed smoothly according to government policies in the event of an escalating crisis originating from the Middle East. Additionally, he conducted on-site safety inspections together with the newly reorganized safety task force directly under the president and held a meeting with safety personnel.

At the safety meeting, President Kim Dong-seop urged, “Given the high uncertainty such as the oil supply chain crisis, please carry out your duties faithfully to firmly protect national energy security through stable oil supply by maintaining thorough preparedness.” He also stated, “Since safety is the highest priority value for the Korea National Oil Corporation, we will continue to maintain safety communication between the CEO and members to establish a safety-centered culture.”

Since October last year, the Korea National Oil Corporation has maintained a standing response system by organizing and operating an oil crisis response task force to promptly respond to oil supply crisis situations.

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