Japan Times: LNG gains political value as Japan's needs soar

With Japan's nuclear power future clouded by discoveries of active faults near atomic plants in Fukui and Aomori prefectures, liquefied natural gas has become a critical resource and an area of great potential for strengthening relations with the United States.

From the frozen wilderness of Alaska's North Slope to Louisiana and the Gulf Coast, American LNG reserves have increasingly drawn interest from Japan since the March 2011 megaquake and tsunami. With all but two of the nation's 50 nuclear reactors shut down, Japan has seen LNG imports surge.

In fiscal 2011, LNG imports reached about 83.2 million metric tons (mmt), up 18 percent from the previous year. For fiscal 2012, which ends this March, total LNG imports are expected to reach 90 million mmt.

Japan's LNG came from 17 countries in 2011, but almost two-thirds were from four countries: Malaysia (19 percent), Australia (18 percent), Qatar (15 percent) and Indonesia (12 percent). Alaska, the only place in the U.S. where LNG exports are currently allowed, along with eight other countries, accounted for just 7 percent of last year's imports. MORE