The United States was the main supplier of the oil, steel, iron, and other commodities needed by the Japanese military as it became bogged down by Chinese resistance but, in January, 1940, Japan abrogated the existing treaty of commerce with the United States.
With the East Indies oil, Japan was able to import enough oil to make up for the oil embargo in July 1941 by the Americans, British, and Dutch. There was no lack of oil, and the Japanese fleet could even refuel locally at will. They even struck a giant field in central Sumatra in the Minas structure.
Japan imported most of its oil from conquered territories, primarily the Dutch East Indies (aka Indonesia) but also smaller amounts came from Formosa (Taiwan), China, and Burma. Many of these plants and fields were damaged by their defenders and it took years to get them back to near full production.
Responding to Japanese occupation of key airfields in Indochina (July 24) after an agreement between Japan and Vichy France, the U.S. froze Japanese assets on July 26, 1941, and on August 1, it established an embargo on oil and gasoline exports to Japan.
This prompted Roosevelt to freeze all Japanese assets in the United States on July 26, 1941, which effectively cut off Japan's access to US oil.
On July 26, 1941, President Franklin Roosevelt seizes all Japanese assets in the United States in retaliation for the Japanese occupation of French Indo-China. On July 24, Tokyo decided to strengthen its position in terms of its invasion of China by moving through Southeast Asia.
The United States was the main supplier of the oil, steel, iron, and other commodities needed by the Japanese military as it became bogged down by Chinese resistance but, in January, 1940, Japan abrogated the existing treaty of commerce with the United States.
LNG supply from Sakhalin 2 accounts for roughly 9% of Japan's total LNG imports, which equated to 3% of the country's total electricity supply, according to METI. More than half of the 9.6 million mt/year LNG production capacity at Sakhalin 2 in Russia's Far East is committed to Japanese offtakers.
Japan has begun purchasing Russian crude oil above the $60-a-barrel cap, breaking with Western allies thanks to an exception authorized by the United States. As many European nations weaned themselves off Russian oil in response to the invasion of Ukraine, Japan stepped up its purchase of Russian natural gas.
On July 28, 1941, in reaction to the advance of the Japanese Army into Southern Indochina the United States government on July 25 froze Japanese assets held in the United States. Additionally all oil exports to Japan were prohibited.
American oil contribution amounted to 6 billion barrels out of the 7 billion barrels consumed by the Allies during WWII; with the majority of the oil coming from Texas.
Germany only amounted to 4.5 million barrels—despite the fact that the USSR sat squarely on top of the world's largest oil reserves. Soviet invasion, Germany had managed to build petroleum reserves to an estimated 56 million barrels.
It imported oil from the Soviet Union until the German invasion of that country in June 1941 and from Hungary and Romania (25 percent of its annual requirements by 1944) after April 1941 when these two countries became German allies prior to the Soviet invasion.
Having lost 94% of its oil supply and unwilling to submit to U.S demands, Japan planned to take the oil needed by force.
Anguished by the risks of transporting oil to Britain from Iran, the British government asked Anglo-Iranian to find more oil on British soil than the trickle it had previously discovered. The company obliged, upping production at a field in Nottingham, England.
In the first two months of the year, Japan purchased about 750,000 barrels of oil from Russia at a price of about $70 per barrel.
Australia is a net importer of oil and imports a large proportion of its refinery feedstocks. Most of Australia's oil is produced on the North West Shelf, some distance from domestic east coast refining capacity.
In the meantime, they are trying to delink themselves as much as possible from Russian energy imports. However, this is easier said than done. For example, there is Japan's recent decision to buy Russian oil at above $60 a barrel. The decision marks a break with its Western allies.
Oil remains the most significant energy source in Japan, accounting for about 40% of the country's total energy supply, even if Japan's oil demand has been steadily decreasing in line with the country's overall declining total energy use.
By the late 1930s, Japan produced only 7% of the oil it consumed. It imported the rest, with 80% coming from the U.S., and 10% from the Dutch East Indies. After the Manchurian Affair, Japan sought to dominate the oil industry to serve its needs.
Japan depends on the Middle East for about 90% of its crude oil requirements. It also largely relies on imports of LNG and coal from Asia and Oceania. If anything happens in these regions, a stable supply of energy for Japan will be jeopardized.
One of Japan's main goals during World War II was to remove the United States as a Pacific power in order to gain territory in east Asia and the southwest Pacific islands.
And although the Japanese government never believed it could defeat the United States, it did intend to negotiate an end to the war on favorable terms.