Thread by @SStapczynski

Japan solidified a plan to divert LNG to Europe on Ukraine tension, NHK says 🇯🇵

🚢 Japan to seek cooperation from its firms that have stakes in LNG export plants (after ensuring enough domestic supply)
🚢 Still determining volume/timing

H/T @shoko_oda

www3.nhk.or.jp/news/html/2022…

US officials asked Asian countries to ship their natural gas to Europe as the region grapples with a shortage

There are concerns that Europe may run short of energy should Russia invade Ukraine, an attack Putin has repeatedly denied he’s planning

https://twitter.com/SStapczynski/status/1488911330325467137?s=20&t=7FWU42cViktfTP0TkNt2gQ

While it’s still unlikely that Russia will cut supplies to Europe, its biggest customer, the continent would require far more than diverted LNG cargoes from Japan to make up the loss

Russia exported more than 1 and a half times Japan’s LNG imports to Europe and Turkey last year

Still, Japanese importers have already been selling spare supplies to Europe over the last several months due to more attractive prices in the Atlantic

bloomberg.com/news/articles/…

Other Japanese LNG importers may be eager to receive all their deliveries in order to refill inventories

LNG stockpiles held by Japanese power utilities slipped in the last week, and are sitting ~18% below the four-year average for this time of year, according to METI data

Perhaps most interesting is that it's the 2nd time in just a few months that the Japanese gov't is enacting a plan to cool down a global energy market at the request of the US

Last year, Japan agreed to a US-led initiative to release oil from reserves

bloomberg.com/news/articles/…

Japan confirms it will cooperate with effort to send LNG supplies to Europe, and that cargoes are already on the way for Feb and March

⚠️BUT, those shipments were previously sold by Japanese due to attractive prices. NOT because of government request ⚠️

nikkei.com/article/DGXZQO…

The US is taking a victory lap after Japan commits to helping Europe

TL;DR:

🇯🇵 Japan says it will divert extra LNG to Europe amid Russia supply concerns

🤷‍♂️ But the move appears to be symbolic, as companies were already selling cargoes to Europe and the limited supply would do little to solve a shortage there

🥇 Govt just trying to take credit