Japan is considering shipping captured carbon dioxide to Malaysia for underground storage as part of a decarbonization project in Asia, the industry minister revealed Monday.
The project, which will be Japan's first shipment of captured carbon dioxide and its storage overseas, is set to start in 2028. Japan and several Southeast Asian countries plan to build an Asia-wide carbon dioxide capture, utilization and storage network by 2030 in hopes of achieving decarbonization and economic growth simultaneously in the region.
Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura held talks with executives from Petroliam Nasional Berhad, or Petronas, Malaysia's state-owned oil and gas company, paving the way for an agreement over the operation of the project among the industry ministry, the Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security, and Petronas.
Negative emission technologies such as capturing and storing carbon dioxide deep underground, promoted by the Japanese ministry, are expected to play a key role in achieving net-zero emissions as the utilization of renewable energy alone will not offset carbon dioxide emissions derived from industrial activities.
Separately, participants of a ministerial meeting on hydrogen energy in Tokyo vowed the same day to turn 60%, or 90 million tons, of the worldwide hydrogen demand to green or low-carbon hydrogen by 2030.
Japan aims to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, with hydrogen expected to be a key driver in its plan to bring about a green transition, also known as "GX," an initiative to transform the current fossil fuel-based economy into one centered on cleaner energy.