We aim to contribute to society,
enhance our corporate value,
and grow as a sustainable energy supplier.
I would like to begin by expressing my deepest sympathies to those devastated by the 2024 Noto Peninsula Earthquake, which occurred at the beginning of the year, as well as to those living in the affected areas, and strongly hope for a speedy recovery. Our mission at INPEX is to provide a stable supply of energy, and as such, we have committed to playing our small part in supporting relief measures.
Based on our “INPEX Vision @2022” Medium-Term Business Plan formulated in 2022, we have been promoting initiatives aimed at sustainable growth toward a net-zero carbon society by 2050. Looking at the situation in Japan and around the world, a sense of uncertainty has pervaded over the last year due to several factors such as heightened security threats caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the strategic use of resources and energy, the sharp depreciation of the yen and the surge in prices. The intensification of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has added an element of instability to the situation, making it a challenge to foresee the recovery and growth of the global economy. Under such circumstances, I have come to recognize that stable energy supply is now more important than ever.
Global efforts are also under way to achieve the goals of the Paris Agreement, while the COP28 communique included a work plan on a “just transition” and tripling the world’s renewable energy capacity by 2030 as well as doubling the rate of energy efficiency. We too signed the Oil and Gas Decarbonization Charter, an industry-wide initiative aimed at reducing methane emissions and other efforts.
In this business climate, I feel that natural gas and LNG are becoming increasingly more important as transition fuels to achieve both a stable energy supply and decarbonization.
We are engaged in business activities that unlock solutions for the decarbonization of energy through the reduction of GHG emissions, such as integrating CCS into our natural gas and LNG operations at Ichthys LNG in Australia and the development of our Abadi LNG Project in Indonesia, and zero flaring during normal operations.
In the field of renewable energy, we entered the Australian renewable energy business by investing in an Australian subsidiary of Italian energy giant Enel. Going forward, we aim to secure 1-2 gigawatts of installed capacity through the combination of offshore wind and solar power generation with battery energy storage systems and geothermal power. We will also promote a responsible energy transition by commercializing clean hydrogen and ammonia value chains at an early stage, given these energy sources do not emit carbon dioxide when combusted.
Furthermore, we are strengthening our human resources in terms of operations, technology and internationalization, and formulating strategies for the deployment of business units and personnel that can respond flexibly even in a rapidly changing business environment. Notably, we aim to become “a most rewarding company to work for” by creating an organization, workplace and culture that promotes employee autonomy and instills a spirit of challenge. We will strive to ensure the success of a diverse workforce by placing the right people in the right places and providing suitable evaluation and support measures.
In Australia, we are proactively contributing to the empowerment of local communities, pledging the continual improvement of our contracting and procurement practices enabling INPEX and our contractors to engage 24 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-owned and operated businesses for work scopes to the value of 15 million Australian dollars over a period of three years. As of the end of fiscal 2023, we have engaged with 16 such companies, for a total expenditure of 8.2 million Australian dollars.
Through these initiatives, we aim to contribute to society, enhance our corporate value, and grow as a sustainable energy supplier. Fiscal 2024 is the final year of our medium-term business plan where we will review our past activities and continue our efforts ahead of our next challenge.