Japan will release approximately 80 million barrels from its strategic and commercial oil stockpiles starting March 16, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry confirmed Wednesday, as the ongoing conflict involving Iran raises fears of prolonged disruption to global energy supplies.
The move comes ahead of a broader coordinated release expected to be organized by the International Energy Agency. If that multilateral effort is finalized, Japan’s contribution would be counted toward the collective total rather than treated as a separate action.
A METI official told reporters that Japan faces an outsized vulnerability in the current crisis, given that roughly 70 percent of its oil imports pass through the Strait of Hormuz — the waterway whose potential closure sits at the center of the supply security concern. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi announced the reserve drawdown as Tokyo moved to get ahead of what could become a wider international response.
The release draws from both national reserves and private-sector stockpiles, a combined pool Japan has positioned as a buffer against exactly this kind of geopolitical disruption to Middle Eastern supply routes.
