Argus Media Limited

09/13/2021 | News release | Distributed by Public on 09/12/2021 23:50

Inpex to ship 'carbon-neutral' LNG to Japan’s Toho Gas

Japanese upstream firm Inpex will ship a 'carbon-neutral' LNG cargo to Nagoya-based utility Toho Gas on 18 September, its second such delivery this month.

The cargo, which is sourced from the 8.9mn t/yr Inpex-operated Ichthys LNG plant on Australia's northern coast, will be delivered to the Chita LNG terminal in Aichi prefecture, Inpex said. The Chita facility is made up of three LNG terminals, two of which Toho Gas operates jointly with fellow utility Jera and one of which Toho Gas owns independently.

Greenhouse gas emissions associated with the LNG cargo across the entire natural gas supply chain, including upstream production, liquefaction, transportation, regasification, marketing, and combustion by customers in Japan, will be offset using carbon credits that meet the Verified Carbon Standard, Inpex said.

Inpex announced early this month that it will deliver a 'carbon-neutral' LNG cargo to domestic gas distributor Shizuoka Gas at the 2.8mn t/yr Sodeshi LNG receiving terminal in Shimizu port on 4 September. The cargo was loaded onto the 155,671m³ Oceanic Breeze vessel at the Ichthys plant on 21 August and departed the facility two days later, according to vessel tracking data from oil analytics firm Vortexa.

This will be Toho Gas' second receipt of a 'carbon-neutral' LNG cargo and reflects a recent increase in interest among LNG buyers in 'carbon-neutral' LNG options, even as the Paris-based International Energy Agency has called for greater transparency and standardisation on monitoring, reporting and verifying greenhouse gas emissions associated with such cargoes.

Toho Gas received its first such cargo at the Chita terminal on 8 April from Mitsubishi's wholly owned unit Diamond Gas International. It signed a sales agreement with six major clients in July to supply carbon-neutral city gas from August this year to September 2026 as part of its effort to achieve decarbonisation by 2050.

By Joey Chua