Totting up Asia’s large strategic petroleum reserves

Asian countries are some of the world's largest importers, with Japan holding the largest stockpile in the region

Japan has the largest strategic petroleum reserve (SPR) in the Asia Pacific region and holds the second biggest international stockpile after the US. The country relies heavily on oil imports to meet its energy needs and maintains government-controlled oil stocks to guard against supply disruptions. Total strategic oil stocks in Japan were 589 million barrels – 55% government stocks and 45% commercial stocks – at the end of December 2011, data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) showed. Japan was the third-largest net importer of total oil in the world after the US and China in 2011, having imported 4.3m barrels per day (b/d) and is primarily dependent on the Middle East, whi