Several Japanese companies have decided to sign or renew long-term LNG contracts with Sakhalin Energy (owned at 50% plus one share by Gazprom), the new Russian operator of the 12 Mt/year Sakhalin-2 LNG project, located in the far eastern oblast of Sakhalin. The concerned companies are:
- Japan’s JERA, which signed a deal with Sakhalin Energy to maintain long-term deliveries of LNG on 26 August 2022.
- Tokyo Gas Company, Japan’s capital gas supplier, and Kyushu Electric Power Company, which have renewed their contracts to buy LNG from the Sakhalin-2 project on 30 August 2022.
- Japanese trading groups Mitsui & Co and Mitsubishi Corporation, which have decided to retain their stakes in the Sakhalin-2 LNG project, a decision that was approved by Russia on 31 August 2022.
Resource-poor Japan is very dependent on imports for energy production, and the Sakhalin-2 project accounts for about 9% of the country’s LNG imports.
In July 2022, Russia decided to take full control of the project, previously owned by Gazprom (50% plus one share), Shell (27.5% minus one share), Mitsui (12.5%) and Mitsubishi (10%). Oil and gas company Shell expressed its intention of withdrawing from the project in March 2022 after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.