this article in todays Aust , and publicly available.
what it says to me is:
- Chinese and Japanese O&G coys are still prepared to work together despite their apparent political disagreements - Japanese still want loads of LNG, to replace nuclear power - if its for the "future of Japanese industry", then that supply must be secure - "shale gas import debt guarantee of Y=1 trillion ($10.46 billion)" - sounds like it is a mechanism to provide a Govt backed guarantee for those coys who contract to import LNG into Japan - can only boost imports - competition from US shale gas may/may not be an issue- maybe not as big an issue as some commentators scream? - we can see from below, that one of the parameters of "security of supply" is diversity of suppliers ergo USA, Canada, Aust etc etc. - if they want to "replace 10mtpa" of current supply for cheaper sources of shale gas, then that will take a decade, AND they actually have to get their hands on the product which might not be that easy - "..E&Y also argues that China is likely to want to retain all its shale gas output,..." - could that have any implications for "you-know-who" and WCL??? - it talks about Europe getting gas supplies from Middle East, and proposed shale gas projects in Poland and Ukraine -- well good luck! how secure would those supplies be?
Japan turns to North American shale to bolster its supplies of LNG
by:Robin Bromby From:The Australian March 07, 201312:00AM
SHALE gas will determine the future of Japanese industry and the country as a whole. Dramatic? Sure, but that's how the influential Nikkei news service puts it.
And the government's move to set up a shale gas import debt guarantee of Y=1 trillion ($10.46 billion) underlines the priority the country is putting on slashing its fuel costs in the wake of the nuclear shut-down.
The plan is to replace 10 million tonnes a year of liquefied natural gas from other sources with cheaper product from North American shale output.
The Yomiuri Shimbun reports a consortium including Mitsubishi, China National Petroleum Corp and Korea Gas is to process Canadian shale gas in British Columbia to begin LNG exports to Asia in 2019.
Japan Petroleum Exploration is to participate in another Canadian shale gas project with plans to import 1.2 million tonnes a year of LNG from 2018. It will join Malaysia's Petronas in producing gas and building an export terminal.
Meanwhile, accounting giant Ernst & Young's latest renewable energy newsletter warns open international trade in shale gas is by no means certain. The US manufacturing industry is lobbying hard to retain all production for domestic consumption.
E&Y also argues that China is likely to want to retain all its shale gas output, partly to reduce investment in coal-fired electricity.
And there has been a shift in traditional supply patterns: Europe is now getting LNG from the Middle Eastern plants that once supplied the US. European consumers also stand to get substantial quantities of gas from proposed shale developments in Poland and Ukraine.
France has an estimated 180 trillion cubic feet of shale gas but there's strong opposition from environmentalists, However, the government is looking at alternatives to fracking.
WCL Price at posting:
32.0¢ Sentiment: None Disclosure: Held
