Japan's Cosmo to keep current refining capacity at least until 2030
(Reuters) - Cosmo Energy Holdings Co Ltd plans to keep the current refining capacity at least until 2030 despite an expected fall in gasoline demand in Japan due to aging population and higher sales of electric vehicles, its new president said on Thursday.
Japan's third-biggest refiner has three refineries in Japan, with a total refining capacity of 363,000 bpd.
"We plan to maintain the current refining structure for the next 10 years," Shigeru Yamada, group CEO, told reporters.
"And in the following 10 years, we will see how demand for individual oil grade changes and consider whether it is appropriate to remodel or consolidate refineries," he added.
Japan's demand for petroleum products is expected to fall about 2.5% a year, according to the industry ministry.
Gasoline demand is likely to decrease as EV will become more popular, but jet fuel and diesel oil for trucks are expected to remain solid, Yamada said.
Under the new three-year business plan unveiled in March, Cosmo plans to make an investment of $3.14 B in the next three years, with 30% to be allocated in green power and energy such as SAF.
Yamada reiterated that Cosmo has no plan to spin off its renewable energy segment despite a proposal from a Japanese fund backed by veteran activist investor Yoshiaki Murakami.
"We will strengthen our green power supply chain with a focus on wind power generation," Yamada said.
"On top of onshore wind power which we are steadily expanding, we want to win offshore wind power auctions while properly preparing supply-demand adjustment functions such as power storage and make electric power supply chain one of our business pillars," he said.
But the company has no plan to invest in overseas wind power projects, he added.
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