Japan power utilities' gas consumption falls 7% y-o-y in May

[TOKYO] Japan's power companies use of liquefied natural gas (LNG) fell 7 per cent in May from a year earlier, the biggest decline in more than two years, as demand for power fell, according to data from their industry federation released on Friday.

Regional monopolies burnt 3.99 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in May, a fall of 7 per cent from a year earlier, and the biggest decline since February 2013, data from the Federation of Electric Power Companies of Japan showed.

Coal consumption fell 21 per cent and oil use was down 19.1 per cent, the data showed.

The utilities' use of LNG and coal has surged to records since all the country's nuclear reactors were shut down following the Fukushima nuclear disaster in 2011.

The utilities generated 64.98 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity in May, a 3 per cent fall from a year earlier.

REUTERS