“Oil and gas will not come from Russia”
Dmitry Medvedev was outraged that Japanese Prime Minister Kishida allowed the creation of a mechanism to lower the price of Russian oil.
“Translated from Japanese into Russian, this means: there will be significantly less oil on the market and its price will be much higher. Moreover, it is higher than the estimated astronomical price of $ 300-400. Compare with the dynamics of gas prices,” Medvedev wrote on his Telegram channel.
He added that Japan “will not buy oil or gas from Russia” and “will not participate in the Sakhalin-2 LNG project.”
“Oil Price Ceiling”
Speaking from the top of a campaign bus in Tokyo on July 3, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said in his speech before the elections to the upper house of parliament on July 10 that the Russian oil price limiting mechanism was discussed. It should double the cost at the G7 summit in Germany. According to him, the ceiling price level for oil from Russia is expected to be set at half the current price.
“We will also establish a mechanism that will not allow the purchase of Russian oil at a price higher than the established price,” said Kyodo, the Japanese prime minister.
He added that it is necessary to show that the world is facing a situation where the foundations of order are shaken, and that therefore the price of all kinds of violence is high.
Earlier, G7 leaders instructed their ministers, after a three-day summit, to consider introducing ceiling prices for Russian oil and gas to limit Moscow’s rising revenue against the backdrop of rising world energy prices. The G7 countries include the UK, Germany, France, Italy, Canada, the USA and Japan.
Commenting on the words of the Japanese Prime Minister, Russian President’s press secretary Dmitry Peskov said that Kishida’s statement does not yet mean that such parameters can be accepted by other countries.
“Such a statement by the Prime Minister of Japan does not mean that such parameters can be accepted by other countries. Let’s wait for the general understanding of the situation. A Kremlin spokesman said there was only one statement so far that no decision has been made.
“Japan needs to behave better”
In turn, Igor Ananskikh, the first deputy chairman of the State Duma Energy Committee, said in an interview with socialbites.ca that oil, gas and derivatives of Sakhalin are “property of the Russian Federation.”
“The Sakhalin project will also be managed by a Russian legal entity. Therefore, of course, the decision of where and at what price to sell and where not to sell is made by the Russian side. The Japanese side cannot dictate terms. This is an axiom,” the deputy explained.
He believes that since the island state does not have its own energy resources, Japan should “behave more correctly” in this regard.
“Japan is heavily dependent on external energy sources. Of course, the closest and cheapest (fuel – “socialbites.ca”) from the Russian Federation. The absence of oil and gas supplies to Japan by Russia will lead to a collapse in Japan’s production”, says the parliamentarian.
He also stressed that Russia is “always open” to Japan in all areas. However, according to him, everything depends on the relationship between the two countries, so the possibility of stopping the supply of energy resources to Tokyo cannot be ruled out.
“What is happening now is the initiative of the Japanese side. We are sorry that this happened. “I hope that the Japanese leadership will reconsider its foreign policy and act more correctly in the international market,” he said.
“Sahalin-2”
On June 30, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on special economic measures in the fuel and energy sector in connection with the unfriendly actions of foreign states. Document instructing to change the operator of the Sakhalin-2 oil and gas project to a new legal entity, which will transfer the rights and obligations of Sakhalin Energy Investment Company Ltd. The property of the company will be transferred to the ownership of the Russian Federation with simultaneous transfer to the free use of the new Sakhalin-2 operator.
In response, the Japanese government asked Moscow for clarification.
“As for the Sakhalin-2 project, it is important to ensure a stable energy supply for our country. The decree of the President of Russia does not imply that the energy supply from Sakhalin will be stopped immediately. “However, a detailed information analysis is currently underway on how the rights of Japanese companies will be respected under this decree and what impact this will have on LNG supply to Japan.”
According to him, Tokyo asked Moscow for clarification on the timing of the implementation of the decree and other details.
Sakhalin-2 is Russia’s first LNG plant. Its operator is Sakhalin Energy. The controlling stake – 50% plus one share – is owned by Gazprom. Japanese Mitsui owns 12.5%, Mitsubishi – 10%. Most of the LNG produced under the project is shipped to Japan.
Source: Gazeta
Barbara Dickson is a seasoned writer for “Social Bites”. She keeps readers informed on the latest news and trends, providing in-depth coverage and analysis on a variety of topics.