Jera, Japan's largest power generation company, has decided to sell part of its stake in the operator of the Freeport LNG (FLNG) export project in Texas to Japan Petroleum Exploration Company (Japex).

Jera is selling a 15% stake in its subsidiary Gulf Coast LNG, which owns  25.7%  of FLNG, for US$380 million. Following the transaction, Jera’s interest in FLNG will be equivalent to 21.9%. The sale is expected to close this month.

The company says the sale is part of its efforts to optimize its asset portfolio. It will continue to contribute to the stable operation of the project.

In addition to the operation of liquefaction and processing facilities already in service (three trains in total, with an annual production capacity of approximately 15.45 million tonnes), the FLNG project will also develop new LNG business, including plans for a fourth train.

In its management plan for 2022-2030, Japex has set the expansion of profits in the infrastructure and utilities segment as one of its priority goals, in order to establish a profit structure that is less susceptible to changes in the external environment, such as oil price fluctuations.

As part of this effort, Japex has been studying the possibility of entering into overseas LNG supply infrastructure projects. Through its participation in the FLNG project, Japex intends to secure long-term stable cash flow in the United States.