Japan will spend ¥25 billion on new technology to cut steelmakers' carbon dioxide emissions by at least 30 percent within 10 years, the Japan Iron & Steel Federation said Wednesday.
The reductions will be achieved along with cuts in materials costs by storing captured gas underground and using hydrogen instead of coking coal in processes being developed with Japanese universities, the industry group said in a media briefing in Tokyo.
The techniques will be tested at mills operated by Nippon Steel Corp., the world's second-biggest maker of the alloy, and its domestic rivals within about five years. Steelmakers account for about a third of the nation's greenhouse gas emissions.
Funding for the project announced Wednesday will be provided through the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.