TOKYO—Japan’s government
is planning to create a strategic
buffer of liquefied natural gas,
trying to build resilience against
the kind of energy crunch that
hit Europe this year.
The government is targeting imports of at least
840,000 tons of LNG a year
under the program, according
to a summary supplied by the
Ministry of Economy, Trade
and Industry.
The effort reflects concern
in Tokyo about possible future
cutoffs in LNG shipments. In
Europe, prices of natural gas
have in some cases soared to
their highest levels yet after
Russia halted most of its pipeline gas supply in the wake of
its invasion of Ukraine.
Japan is the world’s biggest
importer of LNG, which is natural gas supercooled into liquid
form and carried by ship. This
year it has done better than
others in avoiding shortages or
out-of-control prices because it
relies mostly on long-term contracts that guarantee supply
and are indexed to oil prices,
which haven’t risen as rapidly
as LNG spot prices.
Under Tokyo’s new policy,
the Ministry of Economy,
Trade and Industry would call
on certain big commercial importers to bring into the country extra buffer cargoes starting in December 2023. In an
emergency, the government
could order those importers to
direct the gas to locations
with the greatest need.
The policy calls for the buffer shipments to bring in
about 70,000 tons of LNG each
month, according to the ministry. Initially it would last until
February 2024 and eventually,
the government would aim to
secure at least 12 cargoes of
that size for its buffer strategy
each year, it said.