Japanese oil company Cosmo Oil Co., Ltd. recently launched a new service to sell "CO2-free" gasoline to the holders of Cosmo The Card "Eco," a credit card that contributes a portion of members' purchases to environmental projects. "Eco" cardholders donate 500 yen (about U.S.$4 )when they become a member as well.

The carbon dioxide emissions due to gasoline combustion will be offset by emission credits owned by Cosmo. This is the first initiative of its kind in Japan.

The company started indirect support for a eucalyptus plantation of about 5,100 hectares in Australia, where it signed a deal in June 2001 for options to purchase the carbon credits associated with the plantation. In September 2002, the company obtained credits for 24,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide absorbed in the forest from July 2001 to June 2002. Cosmo allocates the emission credits to the carbon dioxide-free gasoline service.

In short, this arrangement counts on the Australian eucalyptus forest to absorb an equivalent amount to the carbon dioxide emitted in Japan through the use of gasoline. The project covered 11,195 tonnes of carbon dioxide emitted from 4,800kl of gasoline bought by the cardholders from December 1 to 31, 2002.
(For reference, there were 50,000 Eco card holders at the end of December.)

Cosmo Oil recognizes that the response to environmental issues is an important task for the sustainable development of society. It puts a special importance on the issue of global warming, caused largely by carbon dioxide emissions generated in the petroleum refining process and the use of gasoline. Together with the "Eco" card members, the company is trying to effectively absorb on a global scale the carbon dioxide generated by petroleum products. It also aims to increase public awareness on global warming issues.



Posted: 2003/01/08 05:09:31 AM
Japanese version

TAG Eco-product/Business , Energy , Global warming , Manufacturing industry , Transportation