Japan Petroleum Exploration (Japex) said it has decided to take 10% stake in an integrated shale gas development and liquefied natural gas (LNG) project planned by Malaysian state-controlled oil company Petronas in British Columbia, Canada.

Japex is in discussion whether or not it will market its LNG offtake from 12 million tonnes year (mtpy) Pacific Northwest LNG Project in Japan, which has become the largest importer of LNG in worth due to its heavy reliance on the gas resulting from the 2011 Fukushima disaster that destroyed its nuclear power capacity.

On the other hand, Petronas, which is expected to have 90% stake in the project, plans to make its final investment decision to create the LNG plant that would cost C$9 billion to C$11 billion in late 2014.

According to Japex, Petronas is also set to close a deal with TransCanada on its aim for building a pipeline between the shale gas block and LNG plant.

Both companies plan to have over double output from the shale gas block in North Montney region which sells gas in Canada.

Japanese companies have been making investments in North American shale gas projects to export cheaper LNG to Asia given that prices for LNG in Asia are much expensive compared to the U.S. because they are typically linked to oil.