Japan spends over 500 billion yen on energy subsidies.

DNO - On May 26, the Japanese government decided to use 513.5 billion yen (3.2 billion USD) from its 2026 fiscal year reserves to continue subsidizing electricity prices during this summer and fall, mitigating the impact of rising fuel prices caused by the Middle East crisis.

Ryosei Akazawa, Japan's Minister of Economy , Trade and Industry, explains the resumption of electricity subsidies at a press conference in Tokyo on May 26, 2026. Photo: Kyodo

According to Kyodo, the latest subsidy of 513.5 billion yen will help cover electricity and gas costs from July to September. This will reduce the average cost by 5,000 yen per household in Japan.

Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Ryosei Akazawa made the statement at a press conference on May 26, when he introduced energy-saving solutions for household appliances and automobiles.

Accordingly, Japan will subsidize electricity at 3.5 yen/kilowatt-hour in July and September, and 4.5 yen/kilowatt-hour in August 2026, the time when electricity consumption reaches its peak.

Last year, Japan subsidized electricity prices at 2 yen/kilowatt-hour in July and September. In August, the subsidy was increased to 2.4 yen.

For natural gas, the government will provide a subsidy of 14 yen/ ^m³ in July and September, and 18 yen in August. The subsidy program will also help alleviate the burden of electricity costs for small and medium-sized enterprises.

In fact, Japan has been providing electricity and gas subsidies in recent years, mainly during the summer and winter months when demand for cooling and heating is high, with the most recent subsidy accounts disbursed from January to March 2026.

This program was first introduced in January 2023 to address the sharp rise in fuel prices caused by the Ukraine crisis. Since then, Japan has utilized a total of 5.6 trillion yen, including the latest support accounts approved today.

Previously, on May 25th, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi announced that the government would establish a supplementary budget package for fiscal year 2026 worth over 3 trillion yen (approximately 19 billion USD) to address the energy crisis caused by ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. This budget package immediately allocated 500 billion yen to directly support households in paying their electricity, water, and gas bills.

Ms. Takaichi stated that the budget would be raised by issuing more government bonds and affirmed that the total debt level would not increase beyond the original plan, thanks to strong growth in tax and non-tax revenues.

In addition to fuel price subsidies, the Japanese government began releasing its national oil reserves on March 26th to stabilize supply. This is the largest release of energy reserves ever undertaken by this Asian nation, involving tens of millions of barrels of oil.

Source: https://baodanang.vn/nhat-ban-chi-hon-500-ty-yen-tro-gia-nang-luong-3338230.html