Top > Press Releases > Back Issues > May 2008
On May 15, 2008 (Pacific Standard Time), the Agency for
Natural Resources and Energy of the Ministry of Economy, Trade
and Industry (METI) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) held
a round table conference on petroleum product trade (“Japan-US
Product Trade: Enhancing Global Energy Security”) in San
Francisco, California, U.S. The conference, attended by
representatives of Japanese and US oil companies, discussed the
possibility of increasing petroleum product trade between the
two countries.
1. This round table conference was arranged under the initiative
of METI Minister Akira Amari and U.S. Secretary of Energy Samuel
W. Bodman. This is part of an effort that the two countries, as
major oil-consuming countries, agreed to implement in order to
cope with record high oil prices, during the meeting between the
two energy ministers held in Davos on January 24.
2. The conference took place at InterContinental Mark Hopkins in
San Francisco and was attended by more than 60 people, including
representatives of eight US oil companies and nine Japanese oil
companies and relevant government officials from both countries.
3. The conference began with opening remarks by Shinsuke
Kitagawa, Director-General of the Natural Resources and Fuel
Department and James Slutz, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Oil
and Natural Gas, DOE Office of Fossil Energy, followed by
presentations by Japanese and US energy experts and a lively
round table discussion. The participants shared the following
views:
(1) This kind of opinion exchange between Japanese and US
companies is highly significant.
(2) There is a large potential for Japan-U.S. cooperation in the
business sector.
(3) In the short to medium term, there are opportunities for
trading gasoline and light oil between Japan and the U.S. In the
long run, Asian oil factories focusing on exports can have
implications on this.
(4) There are also opportunities for cooperation between
Japanese and US companies in third-country markets, primarily
with respect to light oil.
(5) With this conference as the starting point, Japanese and US
companies will explore the opportunities for cooperation.
4. The Japanese government believes that joint efforts between
these two major oil-consuming countries, such as this
conference, are crucial to improving energy security.
The government also expects that oil companies in the two
countries will be able to meet new business partners on the
other side of the ocean and deepen mutual understanding by
taking advantage of this opportunity and that these companies
will consequently be able to find new business opportunities and
contribute to furthering the friendship between Japan and the
U.S.
Division in Charge
Petroleum Refining and Reserve Division, Natural Resources and Fuel Department, Agency for Natural Resources and Energy
Release Date
May 16, 2008
