According to a report published in the Nihon Keizai Shimbun, “Nippon Oil had signed a spot contract with Sakhalin Energy Investment Co, the operating company for the project, to purchase 730,000 barrels of crude oil. Until Nippon Oil, Japanese oil companies had bought crude through [Sakhalin-2] only on a trial basis.”

Citing anonymous company officials, the daily said, “In an effort to diversify sources of crude oil purchases and secure oil procurement, Nippon Oil has expanded its spot contract purchases from areas outside the Middle East.”