After the wide visibility of our article, “Unconventional Shale Gas Development and Real Estate Valuation Issues,” the authors have decided to start researching another article on fracking—this time with a focus on Japan in the post-Fukushima era.

Electrical Wires in Japanese Neighborhood

Photo of electrical wires in Japanese neighborhood courtesy of Iain Farrell.

In the wake of the March 2011 nuclear disaster,1 Japan has been seeking to diversify its energy sources. In October 2012, Japan Petroleum Exploration Co. (JAPEX) announced that they had successfully extracted shale oil from an oil and gas field in Akita Prefecture, confirming fracking as one potential means of meeting the country’s energy shortfall.2

Dr. Lipscomb, the lead author of the new study, will be traveling to Japan in June to meet with officials from the Japan Real Estate Institute, the University of Tokyo, and other financial institutions and real estate research firms as his schedule allows. Then, Dr. Lipscomb will be presenting two papers at the 18th Annual Asian Real Estate Society (AsRES) International Conference in Kyoto.

This work will provide direct insight into the real estate and economic implications of fracking for Japan, a region known for its relatively frequent earthquakes. And, with a recent study from Oklahoma suggesting that earthquakes in that state in 2011 were linked to nearby fracking activities,3 there are implications for Japan depending on the location and intensity of fracking activities.

A recap of Dr. Lipscomb’s visit to Japan will appear in future blog posts.

– Clifford Lipscomb and Sarah J. Kilpatrick

 

1. For more about the effects of the 2011 disaster, refer to Dr. Lipscomb’s article in Volume 7, Issue 2 of The Greenfield Advisor.
2. The Japan Times. 2012. “Shale oil extracted from Akita field.” The Japan Times, October 4, 2012. Accessed May 20, 2013 at http://info.japantimes.co.jp/print/nn20121004a1.html.
3. Eaton, Joe. 2013. “Scientists Say Oil Industry Likely Caused Largest Oklahoma Earthquake.” National Geographic Daily News, March 29, 2013. Accessed May 20, 2013 at http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/energy/2013/03/130329-wastewater-injection-likely-caused-quake/.
Keranen, Katie M., Heather M. Savage, Geoffrey A. Abers, and Elizabeth S. Cochran. 2013. “Potentially induced earthquakes in Oklahoma, USA: Links between wastewater injection and the 2011 Mw 5.7 earthquake sequence.” Geology, published online March 26, 2013. Accessed May 20, 2013 at http://geology.gsapubs.org/content/early/2013/03/26/G34045.1.abstract?cited-by=yes&legid=geology;G34045.1v1.