In 2022, liquified natural gas (LNG) cost approximately 18.4 U.S. dollars per million British thermal units in Japan. The country imported the majority of its natural gas supply from overseas.

Natural gas production in Japan

Since Japan has limited natural resources, it heavily depends on imports for its primary energy supply. Only a small amount of the total supply of natural gas energy is produced domestically in areas such as Hokkaido, Chiba, or Niigata Prefecture. The natural gas produced in the around 60 oil and natural gas mines operating in Japan is mainly wet and dry natural gas. Minami-Kanto natural gas fields dissolved in water, which lies across Chiba Prefecture and surrounding prefectures, yields close to 20 percent of the total production of natural gas in the country. The saltwater in the field also includes a great amount of iodine. Japan is hence one of the leading countries regarding iodine production.

LNG imports

Apart from the two percent of in-house natural gas production, the rest of the natural gas supply in Japan originates from liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports from countries like Australia, the state of Qatar, Malaysia, and Indonesia.

Japan imported over 71 megatons of LNG in recent years, making the country the world’s largest importer of LNG. Natural gas and LNG accounted for over 23 percent of the total primary energy supply in Japan, indicating that natural gas and LNG are some of the most essential resources the country requires.

Global liquefied natural gas prices have shown less volatility in 2024 and 2025 than the years prior, with the benchmark price reaching **** U.S. dollars per million metric British thermal units in May 2025. This figure represents an increase from the same period a year earlier. The global LNG benchmark, which is largely influenced by Asian market trading, particularly Indonesian LNG in Japan, serves as a key indicator for the industry's pricing trends. Natural gas prices become less volatile The Asian LNG market experienced less turbulence in 2023 compared to the previous year, with price volatility dropping to ** percent. This relative stability followed an exceptionally volatile 2022, when LNG demand surged due to sanctions on Russian imports. The global natural gas price index, which encompasses European, Japanese, and American markets, stood at ***** index points in March 2025, showing a decrease of nearly ** points that month. This upward trend in natural gas prices contrasts with the comparatively lower crude oil price indices and follows greater heating demand in the winter months. Landed prices vis-à-vis export prices Due to its geographical location, Japan is exclusively reliant on LNG trading for its natural gas supply. As such, Japan's landed LNG spot price is often higher than for other markets, reaching approximately ***** U.S. dollars per million British thermal units in January 2024. By comparison, the world's largest LNG exporter, the United States, has seen its LNG export prices decrease to **** U.S. dollars per thousand cubic feet in 2023, down from ***** U.S. dollars the previous year.

Japan and China have some of the highest spot prices for liquefied natural gas. In January 2024, customers in Japan and China paid approximately 10.05 U.S. dollars per million British thermal unit of LNG delivered. Destination markets in Europe and South America experienced slightly lower shipping costs. In the last few years, the global trade volume of LNG has increased notably, exceeding 500 billion cubic meters shipped.

LNG demand growth and largest destination markets

Increased gas demand and improved liquefaction technology has prompted growth in the gas market and the entry of new players. LNG prices were initially strongly influenced by crude oil, however, as the market grew it developed independent benchmarks. As one of the largest LNG importing countries, the price for LNG in Japan has become synonymous with the global benchmark.

Natural gas rose to 3.36 USD/MMBtu on July 11, 2025, up 0.58% from the previous day. Over the past month, Natural gas's price has fallen 3.89%, but it is still 44.10% higher than a year ago, according to trading on a contract for difference (CFD) that tracks the benchmark market for this commodity. Natural gas - values, historical data, forecasts and news - updated on July of 2025.

Graph and download economic data for Global price of LNG, Asia (PNGASJPUSDM) from Jan 1992 to May 2025 about Asia, World, and price.

TTF Gas fell to 34.42 EUR/MWh on July 15, 2025, down 2.91% from the previous day. Over the past month, TTF Gas's price has fallen 9.14%, but it is still 4.95% higher than a year ago, according to trading on a contract for difference (CFD) that tracks the benchmark market for this commodity. EU Natural Gas TTF - values, historical data, forecasts and news - updated on July of 2025.

The average monthly price for natural gas in the United States amounted to **** nominal U.S. dollars per million British thermal units (Btu) in May 2025. By contrast, natural gas prices in Europe were about three times higher than those in the U.S. Prices in Europe tend to be notably higher than those in the U.S. as the latter benefits from being a major hydrocarbon producer. Europe's import reliance European prices for natural gas rose most notable throughout the second half of 2021 and much of 2022, peaking at over ** U.S. dollars per million Btu in August 2022. The sharp rise was due to supply chain issues and economic strain following the COVID-19 pandemic, which was further exacerbated by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. As a result of the war, many countries began looking for alternative sources, and Russian pipeline gas imports to the European Union declined as a result. Meanwhile, LNG was a great beneficiary, with LNG demand in Europe rising by more than ** percent between 2021 and 2023. How domestic natural gas production shapes prices As intimated, the United States’ position among the leaders of worldwide natural gas production is one of the main reasons for why prices for this commodity are so low across the country. In 2023, the U.S. produced more than ************ cubic meters of natural gas, which allays domestic demand and allows for far lower purchasing prices.

UK Gas fell to 84.57 GBp/thm on July 14, 2025, down 0.83% from the previous day. Over the past month, UK Gas's price has fallen 4.85%, but it is still 15.90% higher than a year ago, according to trading on a contract for difference (CFD) that tracks the benchmark market for this commodity. UK Natural Gas - values, historical data, forecasts and news - updated on July of 2025.

Graph and download economic data for Global price of Natural gas, EU (PNGASEUUSDM) from Jan 1990 to May 2025 about EU, gas, World, Europe, and price.

In 2024, the price of natural gas in Europe reached 11 constant U.S. dollars per million British thermal units, compared with 2.2 U.S. dollars in the U.S. This was a notable decrease compared to the previous year, which had seen a steep increase in prices due to an energy supply shortage exacerbated by the Russia-Ukraine war. Since 1980, natural gas prices have typically been higher in Europe than in the United States and are expected to remain so for the coming two years. This is due to the U.S. being a significantly larger natural gas producer than Europe. What is natural gas and why is it gaining ground in the energy market? Natural gas is commonly burned in power plants with combustion turbines that generate electricity or used as a heating fuel. Given the fact that the world’s energy demand continues to grow, natural gas was seen by some industry leaders as an acceptable "bridge-fuel" to overcome the use of more emission-intensive energy sources such as coal. Subsequently, natural gas has become the main fuel for electricity generation in the U.S., while the global gas power generation share has reached over 22 percent. How domestic production shapes U.S. natural gas prices The combination of hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”) and horizontal drilling can be regarded as one of the oil and gas industry’s biggest breakthroughs in decades, with the U.S. being the largest beneficiary. This technology has helped the industry release unprecedented quantities of gas from deposits, mainly shale and tar sands that were previously thought either inaccessible or uneconomic. It is forecast that U.S. shale gas production could reach 36 trillion cubic feet in 2050, up from 1.77 trillion cubic feet in 2000.

Natural gas prices decreased across all major regions in 2024, as supply caught up to higher demand. In Japan, LNG sold for an average of **** nominal U.S. dollars per million British thermal units. Meanwhile, the United States, as the largest natural gas producer worldwide, has significantly lower prices for the fossil fuel. The U.S. has had lower natural gas prices than Europe for much of the past four decades. LNG on the rise LNG is expected to shape much of future natural gas trade. Although pipelines have been the preferred method of transportation for many decades, as Europe shifts away from Russia as its main gas supplier, LNG has become more in demand. The global LNG trade volume has already exceeded *** billion cubic meters per year, and is expected to continue growing. Countries in Asia have some of the highest landed prices for liquefied natural gas worldwide. Natural gas benchmarks Some of the most closely followed natural gas price benchmarks are the U.S. Henry Hub and the Dutch TTF. The former is an important indicator of the state of the natural gas industry in the U.S., while the latter reflects natural gas market developments in Europe and potential repercussions for consumers.