City Gas in Japan 2007
2010 Environment Friendly City Gas
City Gas in Japan
Feedstock
Environmentally Friendly City Gas
Production and Distribution
Safety Measures
Residential Use
Industrial and Commercial Use
Gas Cooling and Heating
Gas Cogeneration System
Natural Gas Vehicles
R&D for City Gas Use
International Relations
Efforts for Enviromental Protection
Relationship with the Local Community
 
City gas is being used in an increasing variety

　City gas is making a prosperous, comfortable lifestyle a reality, and supporting Japan’s industry. Sales volume of city gas in FY 2010 was approximately 35.3 billion m3, an increase of about 1.4 times over 10 years. Industrial demand has been rising at a particularly rapid pace. The environmental advantages of natural gas, the principal raw material used to produce city gas, are highly appreciated, and applications in many fields of industry are expanding.
　The 209* city gas utilities throughout Japan are responding to continually increasing demand and to customers’ various needs, while at the same time assisting in the creation of a pleasant and comfortable living environment.
* The number of city gas utilities as of July 2011.

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The number of customers is about 28.9 million   Continuously increasing city gas sales
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  Number of customers  
  Sales volume growth  
space space
(unit: thousand)

[unit: million m3 (41.8605MJ/m3)]
*41.8605MJ = 10,000kcal
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Number of customers   Sales volume growth
 
Sales volume of industrial use reaches 50.0%, exceeding that of
residential use.
  Proportions of city gas sales  
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Proportions of city gas sales
*Others: hospitals, public facilities, etc.
 
Growth rate of city gas sales volume exceeds that of GDP.
  Real gross domestic product (GDP) and final energy consumption
(FY 1999 = 100)		  
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Real gross domestic product (GDP) and final energy consumption
Sources: Statistics from Cabinet Office, “Real GDP” /Agency for Natural Resources and Energy,
“Energy Supply and Demand 2009” *The growth in the sales volume of city gas marked 147.2 points
in 2010, while the growth in Gross Domestic Product (GNP) of Japan reached 109.2 points.
 
 
“Gas Day”.   On October 31, 1872, Bashamichi
Avenue in Yokohama was lit up by
gaslights, marking the start of the
city gas business in Japan. 100 years
later in 1972, the Japan Gas
Association designated this day as
"Gas Day".
 
*Due to the impact of the Great East Japan Earthquake, the data for March 2011 was unavailable for six of the utilities, namely Kamaishi Gas, Kesennuma-shi, Ishinomaki Gas, Sendai-shi, Jobankyodo Gas and Iwaki Gas. Thus, in this brochure, the figures taken as of the end of February 2011 are used as the number of users of the six utilities (end of March 2011 for other companies). Meanwhile, the cumulative data up to the end of February 2011 is used as the gas sales volume and the materials composition of the six companies (the cumulative data up to the end of March 2011 for other companies).