Tokyo Gas 9531, Japan’s biggest city gas supplier, will sell its 25% stake in an Eagle Ford shale gas project in south Texas to Shizuoka Gas 9543 for $130 million under an asset portfolio review to improve efficiency, it said on Friday.

The move will leave it to focus on its U.S. unit, TG Natural Resources, which has assets in east Texas and north Louisiana, Tokyo Gas said in a statement.

Shizuoka Gas said in a separate statement that the deal marks its first acquisition in a U.S.-based business and entry into the upstream natural gas sector.

The volume of shale gas production attributable to Shizuoka Gas is projected at 400,000 metric tons per year in liquefied natural gas (LNG) equivalent.

The gas produced from the project, which is operated by Lewis Energy Group, will be sold in the United States, Shizuoka Gas said.

“Starting with this project, we will consider further business development in the U.S.,” Shizuoka Gas said.

The company has set a target to expand its overseas business to generate 14% of its recurring profit by 2030.
Source: Reuters