Japan's largest LNG importer Jera has decided to sell part of its stake in the operator of the 15mn t/yr Freeport LNG export project in the US' Texas to Japanese upstream developer Japex.
Jera has agreed with Japex to sell 15pc of its 100pc owned subsidiary Gulf Coast LNG, which holds a 25.7pc stake in Freeport LNG Development, for around $380mn. The deal will reduce Jera's ownership of the Freeport operator to 21.9pc. The transaction is scheduled to be completed on 10 June.
Jera will continue maintaining a liquefaction agreement in the Freeport LNG project. The company separately has a 25pc stake in Freeport's first liquefaction train and receives around 2.32mn t/yr of LNG under a 20-year contract.
The sale is aimed at optimising Jera's asset portfolio, although it is unclear how the profits will be used. The company is planning to spend ¥5 trillion ($32bn) to drive decarbonisation of its business over the April 2024-March 2036 fiscal years, focusing on LNG, renewables and hydrogen and ammonia.
Jera plans to maintain its LNG handling volumes at no less than 35mn t/yr until 2035-36, as it sees LNG will play a key role to adjust for imbalances in electricity supplies in Japan and help reduce dependence on coal- and oil-fired power producers in Asian countries.
It has also secured funding for the Scarborough gas project offshore northwest Western Australia, a joint venture project by Jera and Australian independent Woodside Energy. State-owned Japan Bank for International Co-operation (JBIC) has agreed with Woodside Finance, a subsidiary of Woodside Energy, to finance up to $1bn for the Scarborough development, according to JBIC on 30 May. The lending will be co-financed by private financial institutions, taking the total funding to $1.45bn.
Scarborough aims to produce 8mn t/yr of LNG from 2026 at Woodside's 4.9mn t/yr Pluto LNG, where it is building a second 5mn t/yr production train. Jera with its 15.1pc stake in Scarborough is planning to offtake as much as 1.2mn t/yr of LNG. JBIC separately agreed with Jera in March to finance up to $831mn for buying the Scarborough stake.
