Tokyo International News Agency

The International Energy Agency (IEA) announced on the 20th the coordinated release volumes from national oil reserves by its member countries to address the ongoing energy crisis. Concurrently, it proposed an unprecedented 10-point emergency plan aimed at significantly reducing oil consumption. According to reports by Nikkei, the country-specific release volumes published by the IEA show Japan committing 79.8 million barrels, accounting for approximately 20% of the total, making it the second largest contributor after the United States, which committed 172.2 million barrels. Japan and the U.S. together account for about 60% of the total release, highlighting the significant contributions of both nations to the current energy crisis. Furthermore, the IEA presented a wide range of oil-saving measures for households, businesses, and governments. These include actively promoting telework (working from home), encouraging the use of public transportation, reducing speed limits on highways b...

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi announced on the 11th that Japan plans to independently release its national oil reserves as early as the 16th of this month. This decision comes in response to escalating tensions in Iran and the consequent surge in crude oil prices. This marks Japan's first independent release of oil reserves. Typically, Japan would await a coordinated release by the International Energy Agency (IEA). However, due to the worsening situation in the Middle East, which is expected to significantly reduce crude oil imports to Japan from late March onwards, this is an exceptional preemptive measure. Prime Minister Takaichi stated that this release would implement a "drastic change mitigation measure" aimed at capping the average retail price of gasoline nationwide at around 170 yen per liter. Without this intervention, gasoline prices could potentially exceed 200 yen, and the goal is to minimize the impact on public life and the economy. Reports indicate that th...