Japan’s city gas supplier Saibu Gas and compatriot utility Kyushu Electric Power have agreed to build an LNG-fueled power plant at the Hibiki regasification terminal in Kitakyushu.
The two firms are already partners in the 2.4 mtpa Hibiki LNG terminal located on the northernmost city on Japan’s Kyushu Island in Fukuoka prefecture. Saibu Gas has a 90 percent stake while the utility holds the rest.
Kyushu Electric and Saibu Gas said in a statement on Thursday they have agreed to jointly build the 620 MW combined cycle power plant with a thermal efficiency of about 64 percent next to the Hibiki terminal.
LNG Prime reported on this development earlier this year as the two firms had signed a deal to conduct a detailed study on the plant.
The partners said that they would now establish a joint company that would implement the project.
Besides a gas and a steam turbine, the duo plan to introduce carbon-neutral fuels such as ammonia and hydrogen in the future, the statement said.
They plan to start building the plant in January 2023 and complete it in 2025.