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December 23, 2024
 

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Stephen Stapczynski
A Nippon Steel blast furnace building in Kashima, Ibaraki Prefecture, on Dec. 6
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 14, 2024
Nippon Steel’s plan B now in focus as $14 billion U.S. deal falters
The bid for the once-fabled American company ran into a maelstrom of political opposition in the U.S. in the run-up to the presidential election.
Bulk carriers float offshore from Singapore, on Feb. 19.
WORLD
Sep 19, 2024
The shadow fleet transporting sanctioned gas for Russia
In the short term it could provide some wartime profit, but Moscow's ultimate goal is to triple LNG exports by 2030.
The No. 1 reactor building stands at Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co.'s Shin-Kori nuclear power plant in Ulsan, South Korea.
BUSINESS
Jul 21, 2024
South Korea edges ahead of rivals to build Europe’s nuclear reactors
A pair of projects in the Czech Republic could set up South Korea to build reactors for Western countries that are reconsidering nuclear energy.
Data has shown that Western pension funds may inadvertently be helping Russian President Vladimir Putin as Moscow looks to ramp up liquefied natural gas exports to replenish Kremlin coffers and fund its war in Ukraine.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 21, 2024
How U.S. pension funds help Putin’s gas gambit
The case spotlights the opacity of the global finance and how hard it remains to sever Moscow from a key revenue source even two years after the Ukraine invasion.
Russian President Vladimir Putin looks through a helicopter window during his flight to the Novatek-Murmansk's Offshore Superfacility Construction Center in the village of Belokamenka, in Russia's Murmansk region, last July.
BUSINESS / ANALYSIS
May 5, 2024
How Western sanctions are strangling Putin’s Arctic gas ambitions
The Novatek PJSC-led Arctic LNG 2 facility is a key part of Moscow’s plans to boost exports and replenish coffers. But it has remained virtually idled.
The Malaysian state of Sarawak is blessed with the rivers and heavy rainfall needed to create hydropower that can generate clean electricity needed for emissions-free hydrogen.
ENVIRONMENT / Energy
Apr 20, 2024
Clean hydrogen’s best bet may be a rainforest state in Borneo
The state is hoping an abundance of hydropower can help it defy challenges that are clouding the fuel’s prospects elsewhere.
A Tokyo Gas Co. storage tank at the company's Setagaya facility in Tokyo
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Jan 12, 2024
World trying to quit fossil fuels gets flood of gas instead
Formerly a sluggish sector, global events spurred LNG's expansion
A hydrogen storage tank and loading system at a liquefied hydrogen receiving terminal in Kobe
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 27, 2023
U.K. concerned about Japan’s co-firing plans to curb emissions
The move 'prolongs the life of coal plants and leads to emissions,' said the head of climate change and energy at the British Embassy in Tokyo.
The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry has been meeting with Japanese buyers, as well as overseas suppliers, to urge the signing of more long-term LNG contracts.
BUSINESS / Companies
Nov 21, 2023
Japan urges LNG buyers to sign long-term deals for fuel security
The push is meant to insulate Japan from future supply shocks, as well as potentially harsher sanctions against Russian fuel exports.
A liquefied natural gas tanker is tugged toward a thermal power station in Futtsu, Chiba Prefecture, in November 2017
BUSINESS
Sep 20, 2023
Japan’s dwindling LNG inventories could prompt new purchases
Storage held by Japan’s power suppliers fell to 1.62 million tons as of Sept. 17, according to data compiled by the trade ministry.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 6, 2023
Japan in talks to buy gas from Qatar amid diversification shift
Qatar is currently offering prices that Japanese firms deem as too high, a key issue that may ultimately scuttle discussions.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 25, 2023
Gas is here to stay for decades, say fossil fuel heavyweights
Seen as a short-term bridge to greener energy sources, environmentalists have sought to phase out LNG amid worries that it's far dirtier than advertised.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
May 2, 2023
The inside story of Buffett’s big Japan bet, over glasses of Coke at Four Seasons
The billionaire investor's visit is seen as an important vote of confidence in Japan’s big five traders as they pivot away from fossil fuels.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Mar 21, 2023
Enough wind power for a major city snarled in Vietnam’s red tape
Across the country, there is 3.5 gigawatts of potential energy in turbines that have either been built but are sitting idle, or are still under construction.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 6, 2023
Adani’s crisis points to big risk in India's net-zero plan
Adani’s rapid downfall may undermine investor confidence in India more broadly, threatening to curb capital flows into the nation for green financing.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Dec 27, 2022
Japan firms agree on long-term LNG deals with U.S. and Oman in fossil fuel reversal
The agreements, driven by high prices, mark a shift for importers that had been moving away from such deals, expecting a transition to cleaner energy sources to reduce gas demand.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 19, 2022
Cost of green hydrogen to match LNG within a decade, French utility says
Interest in hydrogen is rapidly growing amid a global effort to cut dependence on coal and natural gas.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Sep 15, 2022
Weak yen threatens runaway power bills for Japanese households
Several Japanese utilities — which buy overseas fuel in dollars to produce electricity — are considering asking the government to allow them to raise prices further and remove curbs.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / FOCUS
Aug 27, 2022
Global energy crisis spurs a revival of nuclear power in Asia
Governments in Japan and South Korea are removing anti-nuclear policies, while China and India are looking to build more reactors to avoid future supply shortages and curb emissions.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Aug 19, 2022
Poorer nations face unrest as wealthy countries snap up fuel
Already, gas deliveries that were scheduled for Pakistan or India are being redirected to Europe, where buyers are able to afford higher prices.
How Bashar Assad's inner circle fled Syria after his fall
Syrians step on posters of Bashar Assad and his father, Hafez Assad, in Homs, Syria, on Tuesday.
Zelenskyy to replace Ukraine ambassador to Japan
Ukrainian Ambassador to Japan Sergiy Korsunsky delivers a speech during a handover ceremony of Self-Defense Force vehicles to Ukraine, at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo, in May last year.
Bankruptcies and suicides rise as Japanese struggle with mounting debt
Lawyers estimate that personal bankruptcies in Japan are on track to reach the highest since 2012 this year.
Honda and Nissan consider mutual production of vehicles, report says
Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe at the Japan Mobility Show 2023 at Tokyo Big Sight in October 2023.
The mighty Mekong River's growing plastic problem
A group of elephant keepers in Chiang Saen, Thailand, remove plastic waste from the Ruak River, a tributary of the Mekong River, as a pair of Asian elephants bathe behind them.
For baseball fans, 2024 brought The Summer of Shohei Ohtani
Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani reacts to a standing ovation from fans after hitting his 50th home run of the season, against the Marlins in Miami on Sept. 19.
Casual workouts, cool living, ‘complete’ food: Japan’s health trends of 2024
In 2024, efficiency trumped effort among Japan's fitness-focused aspirants.
Is Japan finally ready to tap its abundant geothermal energy potential?
Steam rises from a geothermal plan in Yuzawa, Akita Prefecture. Despite its long history and potential, geothermal provided just 0.3% of Japan's overall energy mix in the fiscal year from April 2023
Japanese officials inspect Yokota Air Base over PFAS concerns
The Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo in September 2019. An inspection of the base by Japanese government officials on Friday came amid public pressure to investigate suspected links between the use of PFAS-containing firefighting foam by the U.S. base and contamination of soil and groundwater in western Tokyo.
North Korea aiding Russia where it needs it most, Canadian general says
North Korean special forces soldiers march and shout slogans during a military parade marking the 105th birth anniversary of the country's founding father, Kim Il Sung, in Pyongyang in April 2017.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Visitors to Kyoto walk along a street near Kiyomizu Temple in April. A popular tourist spot, Kyoto has seen what locals feel to be an overwhelming amount of tourists in 2024.
Is Japan ready for 60 million tourists?
By Kathryn Wortley

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