JAPAN

1. ENERGY, ECONOMIC AND ELECTRICITY INFORMATION

1.1. General Overview

Situated in the far east of Asia, Japan is subject to a monsoon climate in the Temperate Zones. Japan has four distinct seasons that affect changes in the demand for energy and electric power. There are two peaks in the annual fluctuation of Japan's electric power demand: one is a summer peak due to the use of air-conditioning (cooling), and the other is a winter peak due to the use of heating.

Table 1 shows Japan's total population, its density and its rate of increase. Table 2 shows the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in total, the growth rate, and the GDP per sector. Table 3 shows the estimated energy reserves in Japan. Figures 1.1 and 1.2 present the primary energy supply and the final energy consumption. The balance of energy production (supply) and energy consumption (demand) is shown in Table 4.1. Table 4.1 also shows the import/export balance. Table 4.2 shows the end-use of energy consumption by sector.

A key feature of Japan's energy consumption (see Table 4.2) is that the industrial sector accounts for the bulk of the total, with 45.9% (in FY2001), while the residential and commercial sector is 29.3% and the transportation sector is 24.8%.

Japan's total primary energy supply (in FY2001) was 22,784 PJ. Japan still depends heavily on oil, even though its dependency has dramatically decreased from 77.4% in 1973 to 49.4% at present. The decline in oil dependency can be attributed mainly to the energy conservation efforts of Japanese industries and the development of alternative energy resources in Japan. In FY2001, Japan imported 99.8% of the oil consumed in Japan (87.9% of crude oil was imported from Middle Eastern countries).

TABLE 1. POPULATION INFORMATION

												Growth
												rate (%)
												1980
	1960	1970	1980	1990		1997	1998	1999	2000	2001	2002	To
												2002
Population (millions)	94.1	104.3	116.8	123.5		126.3	126.6	126.6	127.1	127.3	127.1
Population density (inhabitants/km²)	249.1	276.2	309.2	327.0		334.3	335.1	335.0	336.4	337.0	336.5
Predicted population growth rate  (% ) 2001 to 2010 0.7  Area (1000 km²)                                                           377.8

Sources: IAEA Energy and Economic Database and Country Information; Data & Statistics, The World Bank

TABLE 2. GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT (GDP)

Source: Data and Statistics, the World Bank

TABLE 3. ENERGY RESERVES

Unit: Exajoule

(1) This total represents essentially recoverable reserves.
(2) For comparison purposes a rough attempt is made to convert hydro capacity to energy by multiplying the gross theoretical annual capability (World Energy Council - 1998) by a factor of 10.
Sources: IAEA Energy and Economic Data Base; Country Information

FIG. 1.1. Proportions of Primary Energy Supplies (FY2001)

FIG. 1.2. Proportions of Total Final Energy Consumption (FY2001)

TABLE 4.1. ENERGY STATISTICS

Unit:Exajoule