Japan's Trading Giants Take Lead On Energy Security

摘要

Unlike most of its Asian counterparts, Japan does not have a wholly owned national oil company on which it can depend to provide all aspects of energy security. For a country that is also the world's biggest LNG buyer, and whose energy import needs have soared since last year's Fukushima nuclear emergency, that is far from ideal. But this is where Japan's general trading houses — the so-called "sogo shoshas" — come in. Widely diversified conglomerates such as Mitsubishi, Mitsui, Marubeni, Sumitomo and Itochu are all publicly listed, but have prospered historically thanks to their close links to and support from government, and view securing the energy resources Japan needs as one of their core obligations. The shoshas handle the bulk of Japan's general imports and exports and also now account for most of the country's acquisitions of overseas oil and gas assets.