Japan has begun an additional release of oil reserves equivalent to about 20 days of domestic consumption as it moves to shield fuel supplies from continuing disruption in the Middle East, according to Xinhua and Kyodo News. The second tranche will add 5.8 million kilolitres to the market, with the reserves drawn from 10 storage sites nationwide and supplied to four major wholesalers.

The measure follows an earlier release in mid-March of roughly 50 days’ worth of oil from reserves held by the state, private companies and oil-producing Gulf states. Japanese officials have said the aim is to calm procurement concerns while keeping fuel flows steady for households and industry.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has framed the intervention as part of a broader push to reduce Japan’s dependence on routes that run through the Strait of Hormuz, through which most of the country’s crude imports pass. Japan relies on the Middle East for more than 90% of its crude oil, leaving it exposed to any prolonged disruption in that chokepoint.

Alongside the reserve release, the government is also working to widen its supply options, including by seeking alternative procurement routes and suppliers beyond the Middle East. Reports in Japanese and regional media said Tokyo has contacted producers in the United States, Malaysia, Central Asia, Latin America and Africa as it tries to make more than half of its oil imports come through non-Hormuz routes.

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Source: Noah Wire Services