Japan Planning Expansion of Domestic Biomass Fuel Production

On October 12, 2007, Japan's Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (MAFF) released a report on its plans to expand domestic biomass fuel production, with a view to getting approval for related expenditures in its fiscal 2008 budget. According to MAFF's report, Japan aims to produce more than 50,000 kiloliters (kl) of biomass fuel in fiscal 2011 alone and 6,000,000 kl a year by around 2030. As of March 2007, the amount of biomass fuel produced in Japan in the previous year was estimated to be 30 kl.

MAFF began a large-scale demonstration project in fiscal 2007 to produce a total of 35,000 kl of biomass fuel, including 31,000 kl in three districts from bio-ethanol projects and 4,000 kl in five districts from biodiesel projects. In these model districts, the project calls for technical demonstrations of processes, ranging from collection/transportation of materials to biomass fuel production and test runs of biomass-fuel vehicles, to be carried out in an integrated manner. Through the demonstrations, the government plans to establish the technology to produce biomass fuel from soft cellulose materials such as straw.

For further expansion of domestic biomass fuel production, according to MAFF, it is crucial to reduce the cost of collection and transportation of unused biomass resources that now exist widely but thinly spread out in regional areas, and then improve the efficiency of their conversion into fuel. MAFF plans to provide comprehensive support for field research and educational activities to further utilize biomass resources, prevent global warming, and protect biodiversity, as well as for regional efforts towards global environmental conservation in the agriculture, forestry, and fishery industries.

http://www.maff.go.jp/eindex.html

Posted: 2008/02/03 05:03:23 PM
Japanese version