RIYADH, 8 May 2004 — Saudi Arabia was overtaken as Japan’s top oil supplier in the second half of 2003 by the United Arab Emirates, which now supplies the East Asian industrial giant with more than a quarter of its crude needs, according to official figures.
“In the first half of 2003, Saudi Arabia was the top oil supplier to Japan but it was overtaken by the UAE in the second half,” said in a report compiled by the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. Saudi oil exports to Japan totaled 1.039 million bpd in the first half of 2003. Apart from Saudi crude, Japan also imports oil from the Neutral Zone shared by the Kingdom and Kuwait, with a production of nearly 300,000 bpd. Japan is also a major oil buyer from other Gulf producers including Kuwait, Qatar, Oman and Iran. While supplies from Iran have stabilized, imports from Kuwait and Qatar fluctuated because of the Iraq war. Japan’s move toward the UAE partly comes from its shareholding in some UAE oil companies while its Tokyo Electric Power Co. is the main client of Abu Dhabi Gas Liquefaction Co. (Adgas).
According to the report, “Japan will remain heavily reliant on oil from the Middle East, especially the Gulf, given the region’s vast crude deposits and Japan’s limited resources”.