Japan’s first import of crude oil from Azerbaijan has highlighted the country’s energy vulnerability and renewed efforts to diversify supply chains beyond the Middle East, according to Professor Sejiro Takeshita of the University of Shizuoka.
Speaking to Anewz, Professor Takeshita said the shipment reflected a long-standing strategic necessity rather than a sudden policy shift.
“Japan relies on external sources for 99.6 per cent of its oil, and around 93 per cent of that comes from the Middle East,” he said. “That level of dependence is excessive, and diversification has been discussed since the 1990s, but progress has been repeatedly delayed.”
Japan’s dependence deepened after the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, which led to the shutdown of nuclear power plants that had previously generated around 30 per cent of the country’s electricity.
“Nuclear power dropped to zero after the disaster,” Professor Takeshita said. “It has only clawed its way back to roughly eight per cent, and that is nowhere near enough.”
While renewable energy capacity has expanded, he stressed that it cannot yet meet industrial demand.
“High-precision industries such as semiconductor manufacturing need stable, uninterrupted energy,” he said. “From an industrial perspective, Japan still has to rely on either nuclear or oil. Wind and solar can work for households, but not for large-scale manufacturing.”
The arrival on 12 May of a tanker carrying around 45,000 kilolitres of Azerbaijani crude - the first ever delivered to Japan - comes amid growing concerns over instability in the Middle East and the security of the Strait of Hormuz.
The shipment, equivalent to about 283,000 barrels, will be refined at ENEOS’s Negishi refinery near Tokyo.
Although the volume represents only a fraction of Japan’s daily consumption of roughly three million barrels, Professor Takeshita said the delivery carries significant strategic importance.
“Japan does maintain around 239 days of reserves, but that does not change the fact that we are probably one of the most vulnerable countries in the world when it comes to Middle Eastern disruptions,” he said. “Diversifying supply chains is not optional; it is a matter of national security.”
Professor Takeshita also told Anewz that Japan’s reassessment extends beyond energy to rare metals and critical materials, sectors in which supply chains are often dominated by China.
“We realised during Covid-19 how concentrated and fragile the global supply chain had become,” he said.
He highlighted growing Japanese interest in the so-called Middle Corridor through the South Caucasus and Central Asia.
“Creating alternative distribution pathways is essential,” he said. “It may be late, but it is better late than never.”
Pointing to Azerbaijan, he argued that closer cooperation could bring mutual benefits.
“Azerbaijan can benefit from Japanese technology and investment, while Japan can better diversify its supply chains,” Professor Takeshita said, adding that collaboration among medium-sized states was likely to accelerate as global tensions persist.
Kazakhstan is open to expanding its oil export routes through Azerbaijan and advancing joint energy infrastructure projects across the Caspian region,...
Russia's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova praised Georgia for resisting Western pressure (30 May), defending its national interests and pu...
More than 1,500 pages of government documents relating to Peter Mandelson's appointment and tenure as UK ambassador to the U.S. have been published, r...
As Armenia approaches parliamentary elections, Russia appears to be increasing political and economic pressure on Yerevan, signalling that closer inte...
Afghanistan’s consul general in Mashhad and the governor of Iran’s Khorasan Razavi province have discussed expanding trade, improving border trans...
Kazakhstan is open to expanding its oil export routes through Azerbaijan and advancing joint energy infrastructure projects across the Caspian region, Energy Minister Yerlan Akkenzhenov told AnewZ in an exclusive interview in Baku.
Türkiye and Azerbaijan are advancing plans for a major new energy corridor that would transmit green electricity from the Caspian region to Europe, Türkiye’s Energy and Natural Resources Minister Alparslan Bayraktar has told AnewZ in an exclusive interview.
Unsealed records from the U.S. Department of Justice have renewed scrutiny of lawyer Robert Amsterdam after documents revealed communications between his law firm and Jeffrey Epstein's office. The disclosures have drawn attention because of Amsterdam's prominent role in Armenia.
The end of Viktor Orbán's sixteen-year dominance of Hungarian politics has triggered a familiar reaction across much of Europe.
U.S. rapper Kanye West, now known as Ye, performed to a crowd of 118,000 people in Istanbul on Saturday night, marking his first concert in Europe in more than a decade, despite being barred from performing in several countries over past antisemitic remarks.
Okinawa lost transport links and suffered widespread power outages on Monday (1 June) as Severe Tropical Storm Jangmi brought destructive winds and heavy rain to Japan's south-western islands.
Donald Trump said he is “in no hurry” to reach a deal with Iran, insisting the U.S. is slowly getting what it wants. He warned military action remains an option if talks fail. Meanwhile, U.S. forces said they fired a missile at a vessel trying to breach Washington’s blockade of Iran.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has held talks with Lebanese President and Israeli Prime Minister on efforts to ease tensions between Israel and Lebanon. According to a U.S. official, Washington has proposed a plan aimed at achieving a gradual de-escalation of hostilities.
The World Health Organisation’s designation of the Bundibugyo Ebola virus outbreak as a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) is a stark reminder that Ebola remains a persistent global health threat rather than a disease of the past.
When Armenians vote on 7 June, they will be voting in an election shaped by months of political change and a rapidly deepening relationship with the European Union. The result may not only determine who governs Armenia but also the future direction of the country's geopolitical alignment.
The Baku-Tbilisi-Kars (BTK) railway will resume operations on 2 June after extensive modernisation works. Officials from Azerbaijan, Georgia and Türkiye are set to gather in Akhalkalaki for a launch event marking the reopening of one of the Middle Corridor's most important transport links.
Kazakhstan is open to expanding its oil export routes through Azerbaijan and advancing joint energy infrastructure projects across the Caspian region, Energy Minister Yerlan Akkenzhenov told AnewZ in an exclusive interview in Baku.
Russia's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova praised Georgia for resisting Western pressure (30 May), defending its national interests and pursuing a "multi-vector foreign policy" - language that closely mirrors the rhetoric of the ruling Georgian Dream party.
As Armenia approaches parliamentary elections, Russia appears to be increasing political and economic pressure on Yerevan, signalling that closer integration with the EU could lead to significant changes in labour, transport and energy arrangements between the two countries.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment