The Tokyo Gas Group will strive toward achieving carbon neutrality in 2050 by thoroughly implementing low-carbon solutions through the expanded use of natural gas and renewable energy, and by developing the technologies needed to decarbonise gaseous energy.

While promoting the use of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in Japan and overseas as a means of reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, it will use the earnings to invest in advanced fields of renewable energy, especially offshore wind power, e-methane and hydrogen, and progressively turn those investments into businesses.

In its list of action points for the next two years, it will develop a low-cost water electrolysis cell stack for hydrogen production.

In October 2020, Prime Minister Suga declared that Japan aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to Net Zero by 2050. The administration will focus on realising a green society and embracing proactive climate change measures to transform the industrial sector.

Japan is the sixth largest GHG emitter in the world after China, the United States, the European Union, India, and Russia, according to McKinsey.

“The country’s power sector is more dependent on fossil fuels than other developed economies, making it more difficult to provide zero-carbon electricity to the sectors that will need it to decarbonise,” it notes. “This higher dependency on fossil fuels is due, in part, to Japan’s lower renewables capacity. For instance, its deep coastal waters make it difficult to install offshore wind turbines, and its mountainous terrain precludes open space for onshore wind and solar farms.”

For Japan to reach its 46% emissions-reduction target by 2030, it would need to eliminate about 500MtCO2e. This could be done at an average cost savings of $34 per metric tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e) over the next decade because the required technologies are already mature.

“Decarbonising Japan will take significant investment, the reconfiguration of trade, and a reconception of industry focus,” it concludes.

“But swift action could set the country up to become a global leader in green technologies such as hydrogen gas turbines, offshore floating wind and solar technology, BEV manufacturing, and more. These could open the door to new business opportunities for countless companies and individuals while enabling Japan to do its part in combating climate change.”