OREANDA-NEWS. October 30, 2012.  Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. (President: Mr. Tsuyoshi Okamoto, hereafter “Tokyo Gas”) announced last November its group’s mid-term management vision toward 2020, “Challenge 2020 Vision” (hereafter “Vision”), with a view to demonstrating the role and responsibility to make a contribution to the improvement of national standard of living and the economic development nationwide as a top runner in the field of natural gas, by increasing the value to customers and society at large, under the heightened expectation toward natural gas ever since the Great East Japan Earthquake. In the Vision, Tokyo Gas aims at enhancing the LNG value chain, which covers procurement and transportation of LNG, production and supply of city gas, and provision of energy solutions to a variety of customer needs regarding energy as a whole.

As for the main progress in raw materials procurement after almost a year has passed since the announcement, Tokyo Gas has been negotiating with the local project implementation body, Dominion Cove Point LNG, LP, of LNG procurement from Cove Point LNG Project, aiming to import LNG derived from U. S. natural gas, including shale gas, around 2017. In addition, Tokyo Gas is making an effort to diversify LNG sources, taking into account the supply stability, price competitiveness, and flexibility of procurement, by such initiatives as starting to receive LNG from Australian Pluto LNG Project in June 2012, and concluding a Memorandum of Agreement to renew the sale and purchase contract from Malaysia Dua LNG Project in August 2012. Besides, Tokyo Gas is developing overseas business by such initiatives as acquiring shares of a natural gas fired power station in Belgium, and signing Memorandum of Understanding for cooperation with Petrovietnam Gas.
As for upgrading the infrastructure of production and supply, Tokyo Gas will start such practical study as pipeline route examination, etc. of “Hitachi-Kashima Line (name TBD)” and begin to implement demand potential survey along the route of “Hitachi-Onahama Line (name TBD)”, etc.

Also, Tokyo Gas has already started construction of “Ibaraki-Tochigi Line” in January 2012, signed a sale and purchase contract regarding the planned construction site of “Hitachi LNG Terminal” with the site owner, Ibaraki prefecture in June 2012, and started construction of the Terminal in July 2012, aiming at the commencement in FY2015. In order to enhance energy security, Tokyo Gas, together with both Shizuoka Gas Co., Ltd. and INPEX CORPORATION, has reached an agreement in June 2012 to back up supply of natural gas reciprocally through the existing pipelines already connected one another, in case gas supply could be terminated.

As for energy solutions, with the target in the Vision to expand its power generation capacity to 3 to 5 million kW by 2020 including interests of other companies, Tokyo Gas, as a part of this initiative, made a decision in October 2012 on the construction of Ohgishima Power Station Unit 3 to be commenced in FY2015. Then, Tokyo Gas is also spreading and expanding distributed energy systems steadily, with the estimate that annual sales targets of FY2012 for residential fuel cell systems called “Ene-Farm”, cogeneration systems and gas fueled air-conditioning systems are to be achieved respectively.

Tokyo Gas is determined to make an effort for the further enhancement of LNG value chain, continuously aiming at the realization of “Challenge 2020 Vision”.