Japan’s Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Yoji Muto said on Friday that a senior official will attend an energy conference in Alaska early next week, where the proposed $44 billion Alaska LNG project is expected to be discussed.
Takehiko Matsuo, the ministry’s Vice-Minister for International Affairs, will participate in the Alaska Sustainable Energy Conference, scheduled for June 3-5, Muto said.
The conference starts the day after talks scheduled by the Trump administration, which invited officials from Japan, South Korea and Taiwan to Alaska to discuss projects including a vast gas pipeline, as Asian governments consider U.S. investments in the hopes of relief from Washington’s tariffs.
It was not immediately clear whether Matsuo would attend the event on June 2, which will be hosted by Trump’s energy czar, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, and Energy Secretary Chris Wright.
Muto said Japan has been in communication with the U.S. regarding pipeline construction and other issues, adding, “I expect meaningful discussions will be held this time as well.”
Japan’s biggest LNG buyer JERA has sent an “expression of interest” to Glenfarne in the Alaska LNG Project, Bloomberg News reported on Friday. Glenfarne is the development partner of state-run Alaska Gasline Development Corporation (AGDC).
South Korea will send its Deputy Minister for Energy Policy and other energy ministry officials to the Alaska Sustainable Energy Conference, the ministry said on Thursday, as some Asian countries consider investing in the Alaska LNG project.
Meanwhile, Friends of the Earth Japan said on Thursday that more than 150 groups from Japan and around the world sent an open letter to the Japanese Prime Minister urging the country not to join the costly Alaska LNG project.
“For Japan, Alaska LNG is absolutely unnecessary. Japanese companies resold 37% of LNG they handled because Japan is buying LNG much more than it needs,” said Hiroki Osada, a campaigner at Friends of the Earth Japan.
“Starting another new LNG project is already a horrible decision considering this, but it is even more outrageous given it also exacerbates climate change beyond threshold, and destroys the indigenous way of life and the biodiversity in Alaska,” he added.
(Reporting by Yuka Obayashi; Editing by Sonali Paul)