The remarks came in a meeting between Saudi Arabia Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi and South Korean President Lee Myung-bak which took place on Tuesday, during a Presidential visit to the nation, Reuters reported.

"President Lee requested stable crude supply to South Korea in the event of an emergency, and Minister Naimi responded that Saudi Arabia would actively consider support including additional supply if South Korea requests," a statement from Lee’s office said.

Lee is visiting major crude suppliers Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates this week to secure stable sources of energy. The nation sourced some 87% of its crude imports from the Middle East last year.

Iran was South Korea’s fifth-largest supplier, with 9% of the imports coming from there. But with Iran currently facing toughened US sanctions, South Korea is investigating its options.

Countries that reduce imports can secure a waiver, but South Korea last year increased Iranian imports by a fifth, and has set annual deals for slightly more this year, Reuters reported.

Iranian money, an estimated $5 billion so far, is piling up in South Korean banks as South Korean refiners continue to pay for shipments in won, which the banks cannot legally transfer back to Tehran.

On Sunday, US President Barack Obama authorised new measures which extend sanctions to all Iranian financial institutions and require financial institutions doing business in the United States to block and freeze transactions having a suspected link to Iran.

Source: www.upstreamonline.com