Japan's JERA to develop ammonia-related tech with green fund backing

Chiyoda

07/01/2022 10:33

TOKYO, Jan 7 (Reuters) - Japan's biggest power generator
JERA said it would spend 69.2 billion yen ($597 million) on the
development of ammonia-related technology, with nearly 70%
covered by the government's green innovation fund.
    Ammonia is used as a fertiliser and in industrial materials,
but is also seen as a future energy source, along with hydrogen.
It does not emit carbon dioxide when burned although its
production produces emissions if it is made with fossil fuel.
    JERA said on Friday it plans three new demonstration
projects, two aimed at using at least 50% of ammonia along with
coal at its power plants by March 2029 and another to develop
new ammonia synthesis catalysts by March 2031.
    Last year, JERA and IHI Corp  7013.T  have begun to use
small volumes of ammonia along with coal at JERA's Hekinan power
station in central Japan as part of an effort to reduce the
facility's emissions of carbon dioxide.  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2R20GB urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL4N2RN0IE
    The current project runs for about four years through March
2025 with a target of achieving a co-firing rate of 20% at a 1
gigawatt (GW) coal power plant at Hekinan.
    Under the new 8-year-long demonstration project, JERA and
IHA aim to raise the co-firing rate to at least 50% at an actual
power plant by March 2029.
    JERA, a joint venture between Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO)
 9501.T  and Chubu Electric Power  9502.T , will also conduct a
similar project with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd (MHI)
 7011.T , developing a new burner and verifying co-firing of at
least 50% of ammonia at two power plants with different boiler
types made by MHI by March 2029. 
    The two projects will cost 45.2 billion yen, 27.9 billion
yen of which will be subsidised by the government fund, a JERA
spokesperson said.
    JERA, along with Chiyoda Corp  6366.T  and TEPCO, will also
invest 24 billion yen in another 10-year-long project to develop
ammonia synthesis catalysts, with 20 billion yen to be aided by
the state fund.
($1 = 115.8200 yen) 

 (Reporting by Yuka Obayashi; Editing by Alexander Smith)
 ((Yuka.Obayashi@thomsonreuters.com; +813-4520-1265;))