What are the key projects that you have been involved in over the past twelve months?

The INPEX Legal Unit played a central role in supporting the commencement of Front End Engineering and Design (FEED) for the Abadi LNG Project in Indonesia, one of the most significant LNG developments in the Asia‑Pacific region. The project is located in the Masela Block and is operated by INPEX Masela, Ltd., an INPEX subsidiary.

The FEED phase involves reviewing and defining the specifications for facilities required to produce and process hydrocarbons from the Abadi gas field, including an onshore LNG plant and associated upstream and midstream infrastructure. The FEED scope encompasses four major contract packages: the onshore LNG facilities (OLNG), floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO), subsea umbilicals, risers and flowlines (SURF) and the gas export pipeline (GEP). Each of these packages incorporates carbon capture and storage (CCS) components, reflecting INPEX’s commitment to integrating decarbonisation considerations into large‑scale LNG developments.

The Legal Unit provided comprehensive legal support across the FEED process, including structuring and negotiating FEED and EPC contracting strategies, managing interface risks between multiple workstreams, and advising on procurement, construction and regulatory matters. Given the scale and complexity of the project, legal input was required across multiple jurisdictions and disciplines, with close coordination between Tokyo and Jakarta based legal and business teams and other stakeholders.

Once operational, the Abadi LNG Project is expected to produce approximately 9.5 million tonnes of LNG per annum, representing more than ten percent of Japan’s current annual LNG imports. Supported by world‑class gas field characteristics, integrated CCS infrastructure and efficient development concepts, the project is expected to contribute materially to regional energy security while supporting Indonesia’s economic development and Japan’s long‑term energy supply.

AI remains at the forefront of conversations about the future. How can in-house counsel ensure the successful integration of legal tech, while maintaining the human element?

It goes without saying that AI is having a significant impact on how in-house counsel work. From an efficiency perspective, having senior lawyers using AI tools has greatly increased the speed and volume of work that can be managed. Whilst nuanced judgment calls, balancing points of law and commercial drivers, still need to be made by experienced in-house lawyers, the introduction of AI tools has helped to bring those issues into sharper focus by identifying and organising relevant points of consideration.

In-house counsel increasingly play the role of ‘translator’. How do you communicate complex legal advice to the board, key stakeholders and internally?

A good example of being an effective “translator” is providing a risk analysis to the senior management on an M&A transaction. Legal risk analysis often starts with a comprehensive due diligence report. Our lawyers then distil this report into a risk memo, identifying the key risks that need to be brought to the attention of management for them to make a fully informed decision. My role is often to further distil this memo into three to five bullet points of critical importance. This final step requires a good understanding of how senior management evaluate risk, potential reward and strategic value in a potential matter. In other words, CLOs and GCs need to understand the language of senior management, as well as our lawyers, to be able to communicate legal advice effectively.