Japan’s wood pellet imports hit record high in July

Japan's biomass imports rose in July on the year and on the month, with wood pellet imports hitting a record high.

Japan imported 673,000t of wood pellets in July, up by 17pc on the year and by 27pc on the month, according to data released by the country's finance ministry. This was the largest amount on record. Vietnam was Japan's top supplier last month at 369,000t, higher by 45pc from a year earlier and by 60pc by June, which also marked a record high for shipments from the country. The second biggest supplier was Canada at 177,000t.

The country's palm kernel shell (PKS) imports were 505,000t in July, higher by 3pc on the year and by 6pc on the month. Indonesia remained the largest supplier at 383,000t, followed by Malaysia at 118,000t.

The 75MW Yatsushiro plant in Kumamoto prefecture started commercial operations in mid-June. The 50MW Ozu in Ehime prefecture was conducting test runs before becoming on line at the beginning of August.

But the 52MW Ishikari-shinko plant in Hokkaido prefecture halted operations, after an explosion in mid-July. It has been unclear when its generation will be able to resume.

By Takeshi Maeda