Why is Japan Pushing Coal Technology?

At the tail end of last month, the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) met in Paris to discuss measures to try and curb the use of coal technology, in a bid to reduce the harmful emissions that result from the mining, production and harvesting of the fossil fuel. The outcome was a reduction in subsidies on the exportation of such technology.

Despite this fact, the Japanese environmental minister Tamayo Marukawa responded by insisting that Japan would continue to pursue coal technology, especially in the form of exports to developing countries.

An Emphasis on Efficiency

Japan had initially been opposed to the proposed subsidy cuts, fearing competition from nearby China. As the primary method of energy generation in that country, coal is responsible for the majority of air pollution in China today – something that its government is attempting to address – but not via a departure from coal.

However, Mrs Marukawa has tried to put a positive spin on the OECD ruling, claiming that it could actually be beneficial to the Japanese export industry.

“The OECD agreement basically approved the use of high-efficiency coal-fired power plants,” she explained. “There are countries that have no choice but to build coal-fired power stations due to cost. Countries other than Japan have also been exporting coal-fired power stations to these countries.”

As such, Mrs Marukawa believes that Japan can capitalise upon this market by simply improving the efficiency of their coal-burning plants in comparison to those from other countries. This, she contends, will allow the country to make “enough contributions” to the global push to reduce greenhouse gases and curtail climate change.

Pulling their Weight?

The Japanese, who are the fifth biggest emitters of carbon dioxide (CO2) worldwide, have pledged to reduce their emissions by 26% by 2030 (from 2013 levels). However, the Prime Minister Shinzo Abe must balance this with a separate assurance to increase exports of infrastructure by 300% by 2020.

Such a conflict of interests may represent a dilemma for Japan, especially in light of the Paris Climate Change talks which are currently taking place. The summit, intended to unite countries across the globe in a joint effort against the dangers of climate change, may see the Japanese contribution as underwhelming, especially after Mrs Marukawa’s latest assertion. As one of the biggest producers of CO2, coal power plants are often seen as an antiquated and outdated form of energy production.

However, the environment minister is confident that an emphasis on energy-efficiency with regard to the exported coal power plants will be enough to meet their obligations – and she refused to rule out a subsequent increase in Japanese coal power industry. “It may rise, but it may not if we lose in cost competition against other countries. It depends on the market.”