Japan?s Tohoku Elec says imports of Arun LNG near normal: Report

Japan?s Tohoku Electric Power said Wednesday that its liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports from Indonesia?s Arun terminal have almost recovered to normal levels after eight months of supply disruption, according to Dow Jones Newswires.

?We have nearly resumed normal LNG imports from Arun,? a company spokesman was quoted by the wired as saying.

ExxonMobil Indonesia, a unit of Exxon Mobil Corp resumed some of its natural gas operations in mid-July after a four-month shutdown due to security concerns in the restive Aceh province. The company is the sole natural gas operator at Arun.

Tohoku Electric, a regional power utility serving the northern part of Japan?s main island, buys 3 million metric tons a year of Arun LNG from Indonesia?s state-owned Pertamina under a long-term contract.

In the wake of the supply disruption, the company had to secure a total 1.7 million tons of LNG from alternative supply sources ? Indonesia?s Bontang terminal, Qatar, Malaysia, Oman and Australia ? to make up for the shortage, the company spokesman said.

He added that there is only one more alternative LNG cargo scheduled to arrive at Tohoku Electric?s Niigata terminal. It will be delivered by the end of December.

In South Korea, Korea Gas Corp said earlier Wednesday that it has already resumed normal imports of Arun LNG. (*)