Japan’s newest regasification terminal Niihama LNG starts up at Sumitomo Chemical plant on Shikoku Island
Tokyo Gas, a leading liquefied natural gas importer and city-gas and power supplier, said Japan’s newest regasification facility, the Niihama LNG import terminal on Shikoku Island, has started operations.
The utility and four Japanese partners formed a joint venture to build and operate the Niihama LNG terminal with 1 million tonnes per annum of capacity at Sumitomo Chemical’s plant in Ehime Prefecture in Western Japan.
The facility, which is the 37th separate LNG import facility constructed in Japan has one LNG storage tank with a capacity of 230,000 cubic metres capacity and one jetty as well as truck-loading facilities.
The other partners are Sumitomo group members including Sumitomo Chemical and Sumitomo Electric Power, as well as Shikoku Electric Power and Shikoku Gas.
The project also includes the 150-megawatt Niihama gas-fired power plant.
“The joint venture company Niihama LNG has completed the construction and trial operations at the Sumitomo Chemical Ehime Plant in Niihama City in Ehime Prefecture and has begun supplying gas to the plant,” said Tokyo Gas.
“We also plan to start supplying gas to industries in neighbouring areas,” it added.
Subsidiary
Tokyo Gas Engineering Solutions, a subsidiary of Tokyo Gas, holds the company’s 50.1 percent share in the Niihama LNG venture.
Tokyo Gas, which imports around 13 MTPA of LNG, offered a corporate bond to investors, and which it called Japan’s first “energy transition bond”, to help finance the Niihama LNG venture.
Tokyo Gas explained that besides the Ehime plant, the new terminal will supply regasified LNG to the new 150 megawatts gas-fired Niihama Kita power plant.
“The Niihama Kita Thermal Power Station, scheduled to start operation in 2022 and being built by Sumitomo Electric Power, will also use LNG as fuel,” stated Tokyo Gas.
“Niihama LNG and jointly invested companies will contribute to the promotion of carbon neutrality through the spread and expansion of environmentally friendly natural gas and the stable and efficient use of energy,” Tokyo Gas concluded.
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