Japan's METI, JOGMEC, Malaysia's Petronas to work on cross-border CO2 transport

Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), the Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security (JOGMEC) and Malaysian national oil company Petronas have signed an agreement to cooperate on the transboundary transport and storage of CO2, METI said in a statement Oct. 6.

The agreement was signed on Sept. 27 at the 3rd Asia CCUS Network Forum held in Hiroshima, and will be key to enabling a carbon capture and storage (CCS) project planned between the two countries, according to the statement.

In June, JOGMEC had selected seven projects, including two overseas projects in Malaysia and Oceania, as advanced CCS projects that are expected to start operations by 2030.

Japan aims to secure CO2 storage of around 13 million mt/year by 2030 from these projects, with coverage of a wide range of industries including electricity, oil refining, steel, chemical, pulp/paper and cement, from industrial clusters in Hokkaido, Kanto, Chubu, Kinki, Setouchi and Kyushu regions, according to METI.

Malaysia has abundant natural resources and land area suitable for geological storage of CO2, and a project to transport CO2 from Japanese industries to Malaysia for storage is being considered, but cross-border CO2 transportation requires the establishment of rules and an accounting method for calculating CO2 reductions between the two countries, the statement said.

Japan expects to make use of its CCUS technologies and know-how in Asia through the framework of the Asia CCUS Network, which is an international platform covering 13 members (ASEAN states, Australia, the US and Japan) and more than 100 companies and international organizations.

The plans are being driven by Japan's commitment to realize carbon neutrality by 2050, and aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 46% by 2030 compared with 2013 levels.

Japan and Vietnam

Separately, one of Japan's largest energy utilities JERA said Oct. 6 that it has signed a memorandum of understanding with Vietnam Electricity, or EVN, to establish a decarbonization roadmap for the Southeast Asian state-owned electricity company.

Vietnam's electricity demand is expected to grow in line with its economic growth, requiring stable energy supply amid decarbonization challenges, and the government is planning to boost renewables and promote conversion to ammonia and hydrogen in thermal power generation, JERA said.

EVN is the largest power producer in Vietnam, with around 40% of the country's power generation capacity, includes its subsidiaries and JERA expects to contribute to the decarbonization of the country's power sector.

Under the MOU, JERA and EVN will establish a roadmap for the decarbonization of EVN's entire business, including the thermal power sector, and explore the introduction of ammonia and hydrogen to EVN's thermal power plants, JERA said.