01 May 2013 (09:17 UTC-07 Tango)/20 Jumada t-Tania 1434/11 Ordibehest 1391/22 Ding-Si (3rd month) 4711

Japan’s Natural Resources and Energy Agency reporting a big decrease in the number of gas stations.  Almost 20 years ago there were more than 60000 gas stations in Japan, now there are 35000.

Gas station operators blame falling demand and increased operating costs, making the business of selling fuel unprofitable. Yet fuel prices go up for Japanese drivers.

Japan buys its crude oil based on the more expensive Brent Crude price, which has been way higher than U.S. (WTI) Crude.  Some reports say that Japan pays as much as three times what other countries pay, because Japan makes a lot of ‘spot’ purchases.

Another problem is the 11 March 2011 nuclear disaster.  Japan has been forced to switch to other forms of generating electricity, mainly petroleum based.  So while demand for fuel for vehicles might be down, demand for fuel for power stations is up.

According to the U.S. Energy Information Agency, Japan is now the number one importer of liquified natural gas, number two importer of coal and third biggest importer of crude oil.

The result is that the Japanese are paying a lot more for utilities.   Yet Japanese utility companies are losing money!

The major power companies of Japan reported they lost $20 billion USD from 2011 to 2012, and they’ve lost another $16 billion from 2012 to 2013!  So they’ve jacked up their rates, some by as much as 8.5%.

Looks like the only money makers here are the oil companies.