TOKYO, Nov 4 (Reuters) - Sakhalin Oil and Gas Development Co (SODECO), a Japanese consortium, has decided to participate in the new Russian operator of the Sakhalin-1 oil and gas project in the Far East, an official at the Japanese industry ministry said.
Industry Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura later told reporters the government "welcomed" SODECO's decision, which was made by a unanimous vote.
SODECO, which held a 30% stake in the formerly Exxon Mobil Corp-led project, plans to submit an application to retain the stake in the new Russian operating company by Nov. 11, the official told Reuters.
The decision was made at SODECO's extraordinary shareholder meeting on Friday.
"We welcomed such a decision since (Sakhalin-1) continues to be a very important project," said Nishimura.
"We will communicate closely with private-sector businesses and do utmost to ensure energy security," he said, adding Moscow will make the final judgment on SODECO's participation after the application is submitted.
The move was expected as the Japanese government, which owns 50% of SODECO, had decided to stay invested in the new operator and had asked the consortium members to stay to help ensure the country's energy security, Nishimura said earlier this week. (Reporting by Yuka Obayashi and Kantaro Komiya; editing by Kim Coghill and Jason Neely)
