A tanker carrying Azerbaijani crude oil was set to arrive as early as Tuesday with the first cargo of oil received from Central Asia since the Iran war began in February, Japan's industry ministry said.
Before the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran broke out in late February, Japan relied on the Middle East for about 95% of its crude oil imports. Iran's retaliatory shutting of most tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has curtailed those shipments, requiring the country to seek alternative supply.
Japan has imported oil from Azerbaijan before but the cargo arriving on Tuesday at Yokohama and bound for Eneos would be the first since the Iran war started, Reuters reported.
Japan has also turned to the U.S. and Russia, aside from other sources.
