Japan’s LNG trading giant Jera said it has established a new office in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, as its base of operations in the Middle East.
The company’s new unit Jera Middle East & Africa Management would manage six power generation and infrastructure projects in which the firm already participates but also gather information on new projects in the Middle East, Central Asia, and Africa, according to a statement.
Jera said it has built “good relationships” with business partners in the Middle East region through many years of LNG procurement and participation in power generation and infrastructure projects.
In addition to the gas-fired power generation and seawater desalination businesses in which the firm has participated to date, Jera Mea would also strive to develop a wide range of businesses including large-scale renewable energy and clean fuel production.
Economic growth in the Middle East is accompanied by growing demand for electric power with “numerous” power generation and infrastructure projects on the table.
Anticipating growing international demand in the future, in recent years an increasing number of projects have focused on the production of clean fuels such as hydrogen and ammonia, Jera said.
Also, large-scale power generation and infrastructure projects are also increasing in neighboring Central Asia and Africa, making it a region with “great potential for future business expansion,” Jera said.
The joint venture of Tepco and Chubu Electric has this year revealed several LNG-to-power and hydrogen developments.
One of the most recent moves includes buying a 27 percent stake in Aboitiz Power, as Jera plans to develop LNG-to-power projects in the Philippines.
New ammonia cooperation in Japan
Besides launching the new unit, Jera revealed in a separate statement it had concluded a memorandum of understanding with Yara International and Idemitsu Kosan to discuss cooperation in expanding the introduction of ammonia in Japan.
Under the memorandum, the three companies plan to work on establishing a domestic ammonia distribution network based at Idemitsu Kosan’s Tokuyama complex in Shunan City.
Furthermore, the partners plan to establish an ammonia bunkering business utilizing the Tokuyama complex while they also would work on ammonia as a fuel for shipping in Japan.