Central & SE Asia / Australasia
Country profile: Japan
Location: | Eastern Asia, island chain between the North Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan, east of the Korean Peninsula. |
Climate: | varies from tropical in south to cool temperate in north |
Terrain: | mostly rugged and mountainous |
Size: | 377835 sq. km total (Land area: 374744 sq. km Water area: 3091 sq.km) |
Population: | 127,288,419 (July 2008 est.) |
Languages: | Japanese |
Government: | constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary government |
Capital city: | Tokyo |
Legal system: | modeled after German civil law system with English-American influence; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations |
Currency: | yen (JPY) |
Licensing: |
Country profile
Japan boasts one of the largest economies in the world. The country continues to experience a moderate economic recovery that began in 2003, following a decade of economic stagnation. Japan’s real gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 2.5 percent in 2005 and 2.3 percent in 2004. The modest upturn over the last few years reflects higher business confidence in Japan, a surge in export demand led by exports to China, and robust consumer spending. Unemployment in Japan fell to 4.4 percent in 2005, down from an early 2003 peak of 5.5 percent. Japan has virtually no domestic oil or natural gas reserves, and in 2005 was the second largest net importer of crude oil in the world.
Despite the country’s dearth of hydrocarbon resources, Japanese companies have actively pursued upstream oil and natural gas projects overseas. Japan remains one of the major exporters of energy-sector capital equipment, and Japanese companies provide engineering, construction, and project management services for energy projects.
Japan’s National Diet (parliament) elected Shinzo Abe as the country’s new prime minister on September 26, 2006, succeeding Junichiro Koizumi, who held the position for more than five years. Both Abe and Koizumi come from the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which has been in power since 1955. Before coming into office, Abe held the post of Chief Cabinet Secretary under Koizumi. Many political analysts expect Abe to adopt similar economic and foreign policies to his predecessor, although this remains to be seen.
Energy production and consumption
Oil | Gas | |
Production: | 125,000 bbl/day (2006) | 4 billion cu m (2005 est.) |
Consumption: | 5 million bbl/day (2006) | 83 billion cu m (2005 est.) |
Exports: | 94,830 bbl/day (2006) | billion cu m (2005 est.) |
Imports: | 5 million bbl/day (2006) | 77 billion cu m (2005 est.) |
Reserves: | 58 million bbl (1 January 2006 est.) | 38 billion cu m (1 January 2006 est.) |
Major fields: |
Japan - recent news
25 Nov 20 |
Japan: Tokyo Gas to join JV for offshore wind projects in Japan Northland Power and Shizen Energy have announced that Tokyo Gas has joined the joint venture established by Shizen Energy and Northland in 2019 for the development of offshore wind projects in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. |
16 Nov 20 |
Japan: Fugro and NYK set to expand offshore wind geotechnical services in Japan Fugro and NYK Group have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to provide offshore geotechnical services in Japan. They will also collaborate on a feasibility study into jointly operating a specialist investigation vessel for renewables projects. |
09 Sep 20 |
Japan: Equinor teams up for offshore wind growth in Japan Equinor, Jera and J-Power partner up and enter a joint bid agreement prior to Japan’s upcoming Round 1 offshore wind auction. The three companies will jointly evaluate and work towards submitting a joint bid in the Round 1 auction once the Japanese government officially opens what will be country’s first offshore wind auction. |
29 Jun 20 |
Japan: JAPEX commences commercial production from shallow reservoir at the Yufutsu oil and gas field in Hokkaido Japan Petroleum Exploration (JAPEX) has announced that the production of heavy crude oil has commenced from the Takinoue Formation ('the shallow reservoir'), which is located above the current producing reservoirs of the Yufutsu oil and gas field at Tomakomai City, Hokkaido. |
18 Mar 20 |
Japan: TEPCO and Orsted agree to establish a joint venture company for offshore wind in Choshi Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings, Incorporated (TEPCO), the largest power company in Japan, and Orsted, the world's leading offshore wind developer, have agreed to establish a joint venture company, Choshi Offshore Wind Farm K.K., with the intention of working towards a joint bid in the Choshi-city offshore wind promotion area. |
Japan - more news
Other countries in this region
- Australia,
- Bangladesh,
- Brunei,
- Cambodia,
- China,
- Fiji,
- Hong Kong,
- India,
- Indonesia,
- Laos,
- Malaysia,
- Maldives,
- Mongolia,
- Myanmar,
- Nepal,
- New Zealand,
- North Korea,
- Pakistan,
- Palau,
- Papua New Guinea,
- Philippines,
- Singapore,
- South Korea,
- Sri Lanka,
- Taiwan,
- Thailand,
- Timor Leste,
- Vietnam