Japan Petroleum Exploration (Japex) announced a strategy to multiply its oil and gas output by four over the next ten years, underpinned by a major capital programme focused on exploration and production and an expanded carbon capture business.
The company said it will invest 1.16 trillion yen in E&P activities during the coming decade, directing the majority of that overseas budget to the United States. Japex recently closed its largest-ever acquisition, buying Verdad Resources Intermediate Holdings for $1.3 billion, and said more than half of its 1.1 trillion yen overseas E&P allocation will be channelled to U.S. opportunities.
Company president Michiro Yamashita said the U.S. share of overseas investment will include roughly 200 billion yen earmarked specifically to develop Verdad’s assets, and that Japex is open to pursuing further acquisitions. The remaining overseas E&P funding will be apportioned roughly equally between Norway and Southeast Asia, with an emphasis on Indonesia.
Yamashita highlighted national security considerations in the company’s planning, saying the Iran crisis has reaffirmed the importance of ensuring stable fossil fuel supplies. He framed the new strategy as reflecting a global tilt toward a pragmatic approach that balances rising energy demand with decarbonisation goals. The company also cautioned that its plan does not incorporate potential impacts from the Middle East crisis.
Financial and operational targets accompany the investment plan. Japex aims to grow net profit to 100 billion yen by fiscal 2035, up from 45 billion yen in fiscal 2025, supported by a broader 1.5 trillion yen investment in growth areas over the next decade. That 1.5 trillion yen total will prioritize upstream E&P alongside the company’s carbon capture, utilisation and storage business.
Production and emissions-management ambitions were specified in detail. Japex seeks to raise oil and gas output to 180,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day by fiscal 2035, from a current level of 45,000 boe/d. On the CCUS front, the company plans to store 1.5-2 million metric tons of carbon dioxide annually by fiscal 2031 and aims for a cumulative storage volume of 8 million tons or more by fiscal 2035.
Japex is also targeting an improvement in return on equity, aiming for 12% by fiscal 2035 compared with 6.7% in fiscal 2025. The company provided an exchange rate reference of $1 = 159.3300 yen in its disclosures.
Contextual note - All figures, targets and timelines described above are those stated by the company. The plan’s stated metrics do not account for additional effects from the Middle East situation, according to the company’s remarks.