The Japanese government has asked energy companies to replenish their liquefied natural gas (LNG) reserves and share energy resources, a man familiar with the emergency plan says while the deaths of civilians in Ukraine are pushing Tokyo to stop importing Russian fuels.


Energy companies are looking for expanded energy sources as a Japanese resource - poor in the West in punishing Russia, a major oil and gas producer - discovery that was more difficult on Friday when Prime Minister Fumio Kishida announced Russia's coal ban and other sanctions.


Kishida, ahead of the July national elections, is trying to balance energy security for the world's third-largest economy and growing pressure on the Group of Seven Industrial Powers over tougher sanctions against Russia as allegations of violence spread across Ukraine.


The International Criminal Court is investigating what Ukraine and several G7 leaders have called Russia's war crimes against Ukraine. Moscow has denied the allegations and refused to lead civilians in a so-called "special military operation" to demilitarize and "denazify" its neighbor. The Japanese Ministry of Industry has ordered energy companies to ensure that they have three weeks' reserves, and is urging gas and power companies to sell extra gas to each other instead of offering it abroad, a Reuters source said.


Ministry officials also discussed LNG measures with industry, according to a source, who asked not to be identified because they were not allowed to speak to the media.


Representatives of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said there was no room for comment. The Prime Minister's Office declined to comment, referring to inquiries from the relevant ministries.


The measures can be modest, in line with measures taken last year by high-performance energy companies, and Russia's LNG accounts for only 3 percent of Japan's total electricity production. But Japan does not have much room for error. Production capacity was expanded due to the closure of nuclear power plants after the Fukushima disaster in 2011. Last month's earthquake, which temporarily shut down some power plants, triggered warnings of power outages.


+ FREE FREEDOM


Japan intends to reduce its dependence on Russian energy, but will continue to import oil and gas from Sakhalin projects in Russia's Far East, where the Japanese government and businesses have interests, Kishida said.


However, whether Japan can continue to supply Sakhalin gas has become less certain after Russia has threatened to cut off gas supplies to "hostile" European countries if it does not pay in rubles. Unlike European countries, which can store months of LNG stocks underground, Japan only has enough storage space to store subcooled fuel for three weeks.


Amid uncertainty about energy imports into Russia, Japanese companies are beginning to look for ways to replace Russian gas, which accounts for 9 percent of Japan's used LNG. It is used to generate electricity and is also grown in households and businesses.

"In the event that this is not possible (Sakhalin LNG), we will look for other sources or obtain them from other companies," said Kensuke Matsufuji, president of Hiroshima Gas Co., last week.


The company, which supplies Kishida's headquarters and acquires half of its LNG from Russia, is negotiating to buy gas elsewhere, including Malaysia, a company spokesman told Reuters. Tokyo Gas Co., which acquires a tenth of its LNG from Russia, is also directly trying to buy more gas from producers to avoid regional markets, where it is almost five times more expensive.


The company approached the LNG manufacturer in the United States, but has not yet received a promise for further supplies, President Takashi Uchida told Nikkei.

A spokesman for Tokyo Gas said the company could increase its supplies from the United States under current contracts, but declined to say if it had been asked to do so.

(Source: // Reuters)