Today in Vladivostok, during APEC Summit, Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee and Ichiro Takahara, Director General of the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy under the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry held negotiations and in the presence of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda a Memorandum on the Vladivostok-LNG project.

The Memorandum is expected to boost the comprehensive cooperation in order to promote the financing and gas marketing aspects of the project.

“By signing the Memorandum we are approaching to the Vladivostok-LNG project implementation. It will have a great meaning for developing the eastern part of the Unified Gas Supply System of Russia as well as raising Russian gas supplies to Asia-Pacific markets including Japan,” announced Alexey Miller upon signing of the document. “I would like to emphasize that the Japanese market has an advantageous size and is considered a top-priority in the Far East. Gazprom and our Japanese partners with high skills in LNG  projects already have a successful experience of cooperation within the existing projects.

The Asia-Pacific markets – the most capacious in the world, and in the next few years the volumes of gas delivered to it by Gazprom will exceed the volume of supplies to Europe. Eastern gas program is our priority and is being actively implemented. But taking into account the dynamics of the growth of gas demand in the Asia-Pacific region, now the decisions will be made of it considerable acceleration", – noted Alexey Miller.

Background

Japanis in the fourth place by energy consumption in the world. In 2011 financial year the country consumed 83 million tons of LNG. The share of natural gas in the Japanese energy consumption is currently at 14 per cent and is expected to grow. Japan purchases 96 per cent of consumed natural gas in the form of LNG and is the world's largest LNG importer.

In 2011 according to the agreements signed with the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy under the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and Japanese consortium JAPAN FAR EAST GAS Co., Ltd. (comprised of ITOCHU, JAPEX, MARUBENI, INPEX, CIECO), Gazprom and the Japanese partners performed the joint feasibility study on the options of natural gas utilization near Vladivostok, natural gas and gas chemical products transmission and marketing from the vicinity of Vladivostok to potential purchasers in Asia-Pacific countries.

On June 24, 2012 the Russian Federation Energy Ministry and the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry signed the Memorandum of Understanding confirming the intent of the two countries to provide the necessary assistance to the Vladivostok-LNG project.