The logo of Japanese trading company Mitsui & Co. is seen in Tokyo, Japan, January 10, 2018. REUTERS/Toru Hanaiis close to making a final decision to join a new Russian operator for the Sakhalin-2 liquefied natural gas project, the Nikkei newspaper said, without citing sources.
Registered on Aug. 5, the new entity replaces project operator Sakhalin Energy as Moscow rewrites the rules for foreign firms operating in Russia, amid global sanctions following its invasion of Ukraine. Mitsui, which does not see any conditions that disadvantage it, will make a final decision by the end of this month and notify Russia, the paper added., together held a stake of 22.5% in Sakhalin-2. The latter is still considering whether to join the project, the paper added.
The project is critical to the energy security of resource-poor Japan, which imports about a tenth of its LNG from Russia, mainly from Sakhalin-2. Japan has asked both companies to "think positively" in joining the new entity.Separately, JERA, a joint venture of Tokyo Electric Power Holdings