EXCLUSIVE-Japan’s JERA Plans to Expand US LNG Purchases to Diversify Energy Supply

By Marwa Rashad

DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan 24 (Reuters) – Japan’s biggest top LNG buyer, JERA, plans to increase its purchases of liquefied natural gas from the United States to diversify its supply and meet demand growth spurred by data centers and AI, a senior executive told Reuters.

U.S. President Donald Trump pledged to unleash the U.S. energy industry to boost output and threatened the EU with tariffs if the bloc does not buy more gas, meaning JERA might have to compete with other buyers for more U.S. gas.

Handling between 30-35 million metric tons (mt) of LNG annually, Japan’s largest utility currently sources nearly half of this from the Asia Pacific region, including Australia, Malaysia and Indonesia.

“This accounts for very high exposu…