Japan will launch a $27.5 million project this week to explore the East China Sea bed for natural gas, an official said Tuesday, an undertaking that would put Tokyo in direct competition with neighboring China for potential offshore gas deposits.
Japanese officials have grown increasingly worried that China's undersea drilling might draw gas from the Japanese side. China, which has conducted its own studies, has suggested that the two countries develop the area together, but Tokyo has refused.
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Japan To Begin Search for Natural Gas
Japan will launch project this week to explore the East China Sea