Kanematsu to sell gas stake

Kanematsu to sell gas stake

TOKYO (Nikkei): Kanematsu Corp. will sell a stake in its natural gas concession in the Indonesian part of New Guinea to raise funds to cover extensive extraordinary losses, The Nihon Keizai Shimbun Saturday morning edition reported, citing company officials.

The Tangguh project is expected to be a long-term source of stable revenue for the company. However, the struggling trading firm desperately needs to offset 200 billion yen in extraordinary loss on liquidation of affiliates over three years.

The gas fields in the western part of New Guinea are estimated to contain 18 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, making them one of the 10 largest deposits in the world. The fields are expected to yield more than 6 million tons of liquefied natural gas a year.