SEOUL -- A South Korean official said that reports suggesting the country would stop importing crude oil from Iran in the next couple of months regardless of requests by the U.S. and the European Union "aren't factual."

 

South Korea is "doing its best" to obtain an exemption from Iran-related U.S. sanctions and to gain access to the EU's insurance services for oil shipments from the Islamic Republic after July 1, when EU sanctions are due to start, according to the official, who did not want to be named.

 

The U.S. has exempted nearly a dozen countries from sanctions on Iran in return for significant reductions in their imports of Iranian crude. Iran supplies around a 10th of South Korea's crude requirement.

 

South Korea expects the EU to decide in June whether it will be eligible for insurance coverage for Iranian shipments after July 1, the official said.

 

SK Innovation, one of two South Korean oil refiners that import Iranian crude, said Tuesday that it has not decided whether to halt Iranian imports and is closely consulting with the government about the matter.

 

SK Innovation fully owns SK Energy, the country's largest oil refiner, which relies on Iran for around 10 percent to 15 percent of its crude oil imports.

 

The government official's comments came after reports Monday that SK Energy would stop importing crude from Iran after EU sanctions take effect, citing two people with direct knowledge of the matter.

 

Refiner Hyundai Oilbank is likely to stop importing Iranian crude oil from early June, a company official who did not want to be identified said Tuesday.

 

The company cannot risk ordering barrels from Iran that would arrive after the EU embargo takes effect, as earning an exemption on insurance "doesn't look easy," the Hyundai Oilbank official said, noting that it takes about a month for shipments from Iran to arrive in South Korea.

 

Hyundai Oilbank relies on Iran for around 18 percent, or 70,000 barrels a day, of its crude imports, the official said.

 
(Source: wogx)