RusEnergy

MOSCOW, July 12 (RIA Novosti) - Sakhalin Energy will supply half a million metric tons of liquefied natural gas annually to Japan for 15 years, the company's press office said Wednesday. Sakhalin Energy, a Dutch-British-Japanese venture, which operates the Sakhalin-II energy project and is developing two vast fields off the island of Sakhalin in Russia's Far East that hold estimated recoverable reserves of 150 million metric tons of oil and 500 billion cubic meters of gas, signed a LNG deal with Japan's Chubu Electric Power Co. Wednesday. Sakhalin Energy Commercial Director Ate Visser said the company's management was glad that it had reached an agreement with Chubu Electric on liquefied natural gas supplies under the Sakhalin-II project, and hoped for long-term cooperation with the Japanese partner. Sakhalin Energy said LNG deliveries were expected to start in April 2011. Sakhalin Energy will supply liquefied natural gas to Japan from a LNG facility, which it is building on the island of Sakhalin. The facility will have a capacity of 9.6 million metric tons a year, Sakhalin Energy said. "The conclusion of today's agreement strengthens the positions of Sakhalin as a new strategic source of natural gas deliveries to Japan and shows that the Asia-Pacific region is becoming a new major sales market for Russian gas," Sakhalin Energy said in a statement. Sakhalin Energy said it was continuing talks with Chubu Electric to agree on the terms of gas purchase and sale.