Japan, US agree to work together for IEA ministerial meeting in February

Japan's Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Koichi Hagiuda and US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm have agreed to work together for the International Energy Agency's ministerial meeting in early February, METI said in a statement Jan. 6, which is taking place amid global energy security concerns.

The agreement was reached during a teleconference earlier in the day, when Hagiuda and Granholm discussed areas of bilateral cooperation including in hydrogen, fuel ammonia, carbon capture, utilization and storage (CCUS) or carbon recycling, and nuclear power, according to the METI statement.

"As close friends and allies, the US and Japan will play leadership roles in protecting our planet from the dangers of climate change," a Department of Energy spokesperson told S&P Global Platts, adding that the meeting covered "a wide range of bilateral and multilateral energy priorities."

"We will do this by making good on our own ambitious emission reduction targets while also helping our partner countries on their paths to decarbonization."

The US and Japan will be able to find areas in which the two advanced technology countries can achieve results quicker, cheaper and more efficiently by working together, the DOE spokesperson added.

The bilateral meeting took place ahead of the Feb. 2-3 IEA ministerial meeting, which will be chaired by Granholm, and comes at a time when energy security is in spotlight as energy transition gathers pace globally for carbon neutrality.

At the upcoming IEA meeting meeting, Japan intends to discuss that there are "various pathways" toward carbon neutrality based on every country's situations, a METI official quoted Hagiuda as saying during the bilateral meeting.

Hagiuda also said that carbon neutrality will need to be tackled globally, adding that developed nations including Japan and the US need to engage with emerging countries for decarbonization, as well as stressing the importance of creating innovation for carbon neutrality, according to the METI official.