The Japanese government plans to ask households and businesses to save electricity when possible from December, saying the power supply situation remains unpredictable.

The government says that although utilities are likely to secure a reserve power supply capacity rate of three percent, the minimum needed for a stable supply nationwide, procurement costs of liquefied natural gas remain high.

Officials say Russia's invasion of Ukraine is to blame for the higher costs.

The government will endorse on Tuesday a request for households and businesses to save power between December and March, without going out of their way to do so.

It made a similar request in the summer, when demand for power surged as temperatures went up.

It says that if all households manage to cut energy consumption by one percent, enough electricity could be saved to power 15,000 convenience stores for a day. The government will ask that people layer their clothes indoors and switch off lights that are not in use.

The government also says that a one percent cut in electricity use by all offices would be enough to power some 100 thousand households. It plans to ask companies to reduce their use of lights and air conditioning when possible.

The government also plans to extend more assistance to households or companies that renovate to become energy-efficient.