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Kuwait's force majeure on oil shipments to have limited impact on Korea: Ministry

Published: 21 Apr. 2026, 14:27

A gas station in Seoul on April 19 [YONHAP]

Kuwait's declaration of force majeure on crude oil shipments will have a limited impact on Korea's oil supply as the country has already been working to cope with the impact of the Strait of Hormuz blockade, an Industry Ministry official said Tuesday.

Yang Ghi-wuk, deputy minister for trade, industry and resource security, made the remarks in a regular briefing on the country's energy supply, explaining that Korea has secured alternative crude supplies to stabilize the domestic fuel market amid the ongoing crisis in the Middle East

Kuwait is known to have begun notifying Korean oil refineries of its decision, but the country will not face much additional impact from the move as imports of Kuwait crude shipments have already been disrupted with the de facto closure of the critical Middle Eastern oil export route, Yang said.

Force majeure is a contract clause that excuses a party from performing its obligations when unforeseeable circumstances beyond its control make adherence to its obligations impossible.

Seoul has secured alternative oil supplies amounting to 70 million barrels for May, which account for about 80 percent of the country's usual monthly import level, and is continuing efforts to secure supplies for June, according to the Industry Ministry.

Regarding concerns over the fuel price cap system, the deputy minister said the government will consider several factors such as global price trends, lingering uncertainty over the possible end of the conflict and people's livelihoods when adjusting price ceilings later this week.

Korea introduced the price ceiling system in mid-March in a bid to rein in domestic fuel prices that surged after the outbreak of the Iran war. The government has been adjusting the maximum prices of gasoline, diesel and kerosene products every two weeks.

Recently, some have said that the government is excessively controlling fuel prices, arguing that the system is actually leading to an increase in fuel product consumption despite supply disruptions. Critics claim this is burdening public finances.

The average price for gasoline in Korea went up 18.4 percent as of Tuesday compared to Feb. 27, a day before the Iran war broke out, while the average price for diesel rose 25 percent over the same period.

The pace of increase was slower compared to gas and diesel price hikes in the United States but faster compared to those in Japan, Yang explained. Korea's price movements were similar to those in major European countries.

“The price cap system is a measure the government implemented in response to an emergency,” the deputy minister added.

“We are giving a lot of thought to the system as gasoline is widely used by the general population and diesel is a fuel product heavily used by workers, such as cargo truck drivers and farmers,” he stressed.

Yonhap