Akihabara News (Tokyo) — JERA is set to invest ¥69 billion (US$597 million) in the development of ammonia-powered technology, which it portrays as a green initiative.
These developments will be funded with a 70% subsidy provided through the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) Green Innovation Fund.
It is hoped that ammonia-powered technologies is might replace some technologies that are currently reliant on fossil fuels. Ammonia does not emit greenhouse gases so long as the production and transportation of the ammonia fuel itself is not contributing to the climate crisis.
JERA’s efforts are also backed by Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) and the Chiyoda Corporation. The development teams include researchers from elite universities such as University of Tokyo, Kyoto University, and Tokyo Institute of Technology.
This initiative come in the form of an eight-year plan consisting of two primary phases: testing and research until 2027, and production efforts launching thereafter.
JERA envisions power plants by 2029 run 50% on ammonia, and 50% on coal amongst other nonrenewable sources. In that sense, it remains unclear how much these initiatives will truly reduce CO2 emissions.
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