Japan finds 40 trillion cubic feet of gas hydrate reserves

Japan’s government said an offshore field in the Pacific Ocean holds an estimated 40 trillion cubic feet of frozen natural gas, equivalent to the country’s gas demand for about 14 years.
The gas, in methane hydrate deposits, lies under the seabed of eastern Nankai Trough area, about 50 kilometers (31 miles) offshore, the trade ministry said in a statement today.