Major LNG buyer Chubu Electric could need as much as 15 million tonnes of the fuel next year if it is unable to reopen its shuttered nuclear plant, said a company executive.
That volume represents a 15% jump on already heightened import estimates for 2011 and a 50% leap over last year. Fuel procurement chief Yuji Kakimi said LNG imports by the company, Japan’s third largest power generator, could return to 2010 levels of 10 million tonnes if it is allowed to restart the nuclear facility.
He
