TotalEnergies, TES, Osaka Gas, Toho Gas, and ITOCHU have inked a Joint Development and Operating Agreement giving the Japanese companies a combined 33.3% stake in the Live Oak project—a large-scale facility producing electric natural gas (e-NG), also known as e-methane, in Nebraska, USA. Following the agreement, TotalEnergies and TES will each retain a 33.35% stake.

 

The consortium is now preparing the Front-End Engineering Design (FEED) phase, targeting 250 MW of electrolysis capacity and 75 kilotonnes per annum of methanation. The project, awaiting a Final Investment Decision in 2027, is slated to begin commercial operations by 2030, with plans to export e-NG to Japan. Osaka Gas and Toho Gas will serve as the primary offtakers, advancing their goal of injecting 1% carbon-neutral gas into the Japanese gas grid by 2030.

 

The partnership builds on a 2023 collaboration between TotalEnergies and TES to pioneer large-scale e-NG production. The Live Oak project will utilize Nebraska’s abundant biogenic CO2 from bioethanol plants, combined with the region’s growing renewable energy capacity.

 

The involvement of Osaka Gas, Toho Gas, and ITOCHU—as coordinator of Japanese firms—“underscores their commitment to decarbonization with the adoption of e-NG” and positions Live Oak as a leading carbon-neutral gas project for Japan.

 

e-NG, a synthetic gas made from renewable hydrogen and CO2, is chemically identical to conventional natural gas. It can be integrated seamlessly into existing LNG infrastructure—including liquefaction, transport, regasification, and distribution—without requiring changes to consumer equipment.