Japan’s biggest city gas supplier Tokyo Gas Co Ltd and power utility Chugoku Electric Power Co said on Thursday they plan to collaborate for the procurement of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to help cut costs.
The two companies will consider collaborating in flexible LNG procurement, including possible cargo swaps and seasonal swaps, as well as help each other during an emergency, to secure stable supply and lower costs, a Tokyo Gas spokesman said.
Tokyo Gas, a major LNG buyer, has already made similar partnerships with Kansai Electric Power Co in 2016 and Kyushu Electric Power Co in 2017.
Tokyo Gas, which imports about 14 million tonnes of LNG a year, aims to boost LNG trading to 5 million tonnes by 2030 from nearly nil now, to generate 10 billion yen ($92 million) in profit, its president Takashi Uchida told Reuters in an interview earlier this week.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Yuka Obayashi; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta)
