Japan Ask For Reforms in LNG Market

Japan, a major LNG imports, has called for revamp of the world's LNG market, as it looks for new energy sources. Country’s industry minister has advised delinking liquid natural gas from the oil pricing model.

Industry minister Yukio Edano said the present pricing structures on LNG markets meant in Asia, where its price is index-linked to oil, buyers were paying far more than those in North America, where price is determined on the basis of supply and demand, AFP said in a report.

"As one means to secure stable procurement of LNG, the government will start studying this fall the creation of an LNG futures market," he said at a conference in Tokyo.

The Japanese government last week announced its intention to wean the country off nuclear power by 2040, a form of energy that used to provide a third of the country's electricity.