South Korea and the UAE have agreed to cooperate on energy exploration and stockpiling of crude oil it has been reported.
State run Korea National Oil Corp (KNOC) and Abu Dhabi National Oil Co (ADNOC) are to sign a preliminary agreement, South Korea’s Ministry of Knowledge Economy said in an emailed statement to Bloomberg.
The countries are expanding economic cooperation after state controlled Korea Electric Power Corp beat General Electric Co and Areva SA to win a US$20 billion contract from the UAE in December to build a nuclear power plant.
South Korea and the UAE will form a team to study the possibility of exploring for oil and gas in Abu Dhabi, holder of most of the oil reserves in the UAE, according to the ministry.
They will also discuss a plan where ADNOC can make use of storage facilities owned by KNOC.
South Korea’s imports from Middle Eastern countries jumped 51.7% in the first five months of this year, compared to the same period last year.
The increase in imports saw South Korea purchase more oil and gas products to fuel its industries.
The country imported $34 billion worth of products up until the end of May from countries including Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE, news agency WAM reported.
