Idemitsu Kosan has started procuring Saudi Arabian crude through a longer bypass route via the Suez Canal and around the Cape of Good Hope after tanker passage through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in the Red Sea became difficult. President Noriaki Sakai said the shift increases shipping time and costs but should not cause major supply disruptions, with voyages from Saudi Arabia to Japan stretching from about 20 days to 50-60 days. The supply strain comes as Saudi Arabia and the UAE seek a large expansion of crude storage in Japan, reportedly asking to raise their existing reserves of about 8 million barrels each by up to 10 times, to help serve East Asian buyers during prolonged disruption at the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb. Saudi Aramco has also increased shipments through Egypt's SUMED pipeline from Yanbu to Ain Sokhna and onward from Sidi Kerir. Sakai said Japan should prioritize stable Middle Eastern supply because domestic refineries are configured for those grades, while acknowledging that government and industry should discuss the appropriate procurement balance.