SEOUL - South Korea's Korea National Oil Corp. (KNOC) announced on Monday an agreement with Saudi Arabia's Aramco to reserve 5.3 million barrels of oil in the southeastern industrial city of Ulsan.
According to a new release by Yonhap News Agency, the agreement provides South Korea with priority purchasing rights in the event of a supply crisis. The deal coincides with South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's state visit to Saudi Arabia. Under standard conditions, Aramco will sell crude reserves stored in Ulsan to South Korea and other destinations. The corporation stated, "Considering the volatile oil prices in the wake of the geopolitical uncertainties in the Middle East amid the armed conflict between Israel and Hamas, we have further bolstered the country's responsiveness in national energy security by hosting the reserves." South Korea currently maintains a reserve of 96 million barrels of oil, enough to cover 120 days of demand.