Japanese firms seek domestic offshore gas
Inpex, backed by Jogmec, is set to start drilling off the coast of Japan in March
Japan’s Inpex, with financial backing from fellow Japanese firm Jogmec, plans to drill for gas in the Sea of Japan from March. The exploratory work will follow previous drilling in the region, which “raised expectations for the location of oil and natural gas resources offshore Shimane and Yamaguchi prefectures”, Inpex says. Officials from Japan’s Ministry for Economy, Trade and Industry—which commissioned the original exploration drilling—have been talking up the potential resource size in the press, while Inpex suggests that, if commercially viable, any finds would “contribute to the improvement of Japan’s energy self-sufficiency rate”. The site is roughly 130km north of the coastal city
Also in this section
24 April 2024
But even planned exploration activity is unlikely to reverse declining output from mature fields
23 April 2024
Cheaper Russian barrels and lower overall crude prices have helped cut key oil consumer’s import bills in election year
22 April 2024
Pursuing three different goals as part of the same package may mean achieving none of them
22 April 2024
Beijing’s renewed targeting of NOC management could threaten investment