Tokyo Gas, Gas Malaysia cooperate on cleaner gas supply

Japanese gas retailer Tokyo Gas and Gas Malaysia will enhance their partnership in a gas grid network business, to further drive decarbonisation of their city gas supplies.

Tokyo Gas Network, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tokyo Gas, and Gas Malaysia agreed on 25 July to work together by exchanging knowledge and expertise related to cleaner fuels and technologies.

Tokyo Gas will seek to learn the impact of biogas, which has different calorific values from conventional city gas supplies, on pipeline equipment, as Gas Malaysia has already used biogas in its grid networks, Tokyo Gas said. Gas Malaysia also seeks to understand from Tokyo Gas the utilisation of hydrogen in the pipeline, the company added.

Tokyo Gas is planning to supply hydrogen-based city gas through pipelines to a new town, called Harumi Flag, constructed on the site of the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympic Games village in 2021. The volumes are expected to supplied from March 2024, it said.

It is still unclear whether both companies will work together on developing synthetic methane, also called e-methane, another cleaner feedstock for city gas. Tokyo Gas, along with fellow Japanese gas utilities, is gearing up to introduce e-methane in the country's gas grid networks.

Tokyo Gas holds an 18.5pc stake in Gas Malaysia through Tokyo Gas-Mitsui, while Malaysia-based utilities and infrastructure group MMC and Malaysia's state-owned oil firm Petronas own 30.9pc and 14.8pc, respectively. Around 35.8pc of the stake is publicly held.

Tokyo Gas had established a joint venture with Gas Malaysia in 2014 to develop the energy service business in Malaysia.

By Motoko Hasegawa