Press Conference — Ahead of COP30, release of two studies on Japanese LNG resales and JBIC’s GHG Emission

What: Press Conference — Ahead of COP30, release of two studies on Japanese LNG resales and JBIC’s GHG Emission
When: 3:00 – 3:45PM Japan Standard Time, Wednesday, November 5, 2025
Where: Zoom, Registration link
Who:

• Hiroki Osada, Campaigner, Friends of the Earth Japan 
• Louis Goddard, Head of Research, Data Desk 
• Sharon Wilson, Oil Field Witness
  Media Q&A will follow presentations.

As climate action becomes ever more urgent, the Japanese government has still not ended its large-scale financial support for overseas fossil fuel projects. This stance has been repeatedly criticized at past COPs, earning Japan the “Fossil of the Day” award and sparking protests on site. Ahead of COP30, Friends of the Earth Japan will release two new research reports that shed light on the often-overlooked climate impacts caused by Japan’s public financial institutions.

The first study delivers what no one, including JBIC (Japan Bank for International Cooperation) itself, has ever published: a project-by-project accounting of the greenhouse gases driven by JBIC’s fossil-fuel financing, testing JBIC’s trajectory against a 1.5°C pathway. The study exposes JBIC’s financed emissions as vast—comparable to some of the world’s largest emitting countries. 

The second study on the LNG resale reveals that many cargoes handled by Japanese companies are resold to destinations other than Japan, including cargoes from JBIC-financed projects, including those in the U.S. This calls into question the need for any new public financing for LNG and the rationale for heeding President Trump’s demand to support the U.S. LNG financing.

New publications on JBIC’s GHG Emission

• Daniel Horen Greenford, PhD: Climate Impacts of Japan’s Public Finance: Greenhouse Gas Emissions from JBIC’s Fossil Fuel Finance and Alignment with the 1.5°C Goal 
• Summary Briefing (FoE Japan): Japan’s Hidden Responsibility: Overseas GHG Emissions from Government-Backed Fossil Fuel Finance

New publications on Japanese LNG Trading

• Data Desk: Japanese LNG Trading: A Data-Driven Portrait of A State-Enabled Resale System
• Summary Briefing (FoE Japan): LNG for Resale: Is Public Support for New Overseas LNG Projects Necessary? 

An embargoed (until 3PM November 5th) copy of the report is available by request. Speakers are available for interviews.

Contact: Hiroki Osada, Friends of the Earth Japan.
Email: osada@foejapan.org; Whatsapp: +81 80 2788 8401