A consortium comprising Mitsubishi Corporation (MC), Japan Oil, Gas and Metals National Corporation, Chubu Electric Power Co., Inc., Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. and Osaka Gas Co., Ltd has agreed to collaborate on a shale gas project in northeastern British Columbia, Canada, into which MC invested last September. This is the first time Japanese utilities and gas companies have been involved in shale gas development.
The consortium has also announced CAD$ 1 billion (approx. 83 billion JPY) in funding for the Cordova Embayment Project will be covered by the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd. (BTMU). The involvement of JOGMEC and the CAD$ 1 billion in co-financing from JBIC makes this a joint, public-private sector initiative.
The project got underway last September with MC’s establishment of an unincorporated fifty-fifty joint venture between its Calgary-based subsidiary Cordova Gas Resources Ltd.(CGR), and Penn West Exploration (PWE), a senior independent Canadian oil and natural gas producer also based in Calgary. 22.5% of MC’s shares in CGR have been now transferred to Chubu Electric, Tokyo Gas and Osaka Gas from MC, each partner receiving an equal 7.5%. JOGMEC has also gained a 7.5% share in CGR through its investment in Shale Gas Investment B.V., a subsidiary established by MC in Amsterdam.
Large-volume production of shale gas is now cost feasible due to recent advances in drilling and completion technology. As a result of these advances, large reserves have been brought to international attention. In particular, western Canada has abundant reserves of shale gas, which is garnering attention worldwide as a viable source of energy. Through the formation of the consortium, all the companies expect to obtain beneficial knowledge about shale gas developments. The consortium plans to discuss studying the possibility of exporting the shale gas to Japan as LNG which will contribute to diversify energy import and to secure stable energy supply to Japan.
Last September CGR acquired 50% of those of PWE’s shale gas assets located in northeastern British Columbia.. Since then, development of the Cordova Embayment reserves has been underway. The goal is to raise daily production to approximately 500 million cubic feet by 2014 (approx. 3.5 million tons per year LNG equivalent). CGR’s share of production (50% of the total) will be for the Canadian market. This will be handled in part by CIMA Energy Ltd., a US-based gas marketing company of which MC owns 34%.
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Source: Mitsubishi Corporation, May 9, 2011;