LNG

Jan 26 (LNGJ) - Hokkaido Electric Power Co., the Japanese utility that receives cargoes from the US including Freeport LNG in Texas before the June closure, said nine-month power sales increased by more than 41 percent to 623.8 billion Japanese yen ($4.8Bln).

   However, the company said it posted a net loss in the fiscal year to December and planned to increase electricity prices by at least 32 percent from June. The utility, which imports LNG volumes at the Ishikari import terminal, swung to a nine-month loss of 21Bln yen ($161.1 million) as fuel prices for power generation rose.

Hokkaido Electric Power, the Japanese utility, said it started loading trucks with liquefied natural gas at its Ishikari import facility for a small-scale distribution business aimed at industrial customers.