Yuka Obayashi and Katya Golubkova | TOKYO (Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday that Japan will form a joint venture to develop a liquefied natural gas project in Alaska. However, a Japanese government official said he was not aware of such plans.
It was not immediately clear whether Trump was referring specifically to the proposed $44 billion Alaska LNG project. That project would consist of an 800-mile (1,300-km) pipeline carrying gas to a planned liquefaction plant for export.
Trump’s announcement of the venture came in comments to lawmakers at the White House, where he discussed his trade deal with Japan.
“We concluded the one deal … and now we’re going to conclude another one because they’re forming a joint venture with us at, in Alaska, as you know, for the LNG,” Trump told the lawmakers. “They’re all set to make that deal now.”
The METI official, who oversees resource development, said the agency is working to confirm Trump’s comments.
Several companies from Japan have expressed interest in purchasing LNG from the project, including Thailand’s PTT and India’s GAIL.
JERA and Tokyo Gas, Japan’s two largest LNG buyers, have expressed interest in the Alaska LNG project but stated that they would need to assess specific conditions, including costs, before moving forward.
However, when asked about the joint venture mentioned by Trump, a JERA spokesperson stated that they could not confirm it.
A Tokyo Gas spokesperson declined to comment, saying the company is not involved in a joint venture for LNG in Alaska and is not familiar with the details.
(Reporting by Yuka Obayashi and Katya Golubkova; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)
Tokyo Gas America Ltd.
Tokyo Gas America Ltd. was established on February 1, 2013 and is fully owned by Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. The company operates a wide range of businesses, including upstream operations such as gas field development, as well as midstream to downstream operations, exemplified by power generation, natural gas distribution, LNG exportation, and natural gas trading in North America.
Another subsidiary, TG Natural Resources, is focused on consolidating its East Texas and North Louisiana platforms through strategic acquisitions that possess predictable development upside, yielding strong returns to its shareholders.
