The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry held the first Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC) Senior Officials Meeting; joint formulation of technical standards
On June 24th, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) held the first Senior Officials Meeting of Asia Zero Emission Community (AZEC) in Indonesia which aims to facilitate the energy transition across Asia lead by the Japanese government. Japan, ASEAN countries, and member states of AZEC including Australia participated in the meeting. They made agreements on the development of a master plan for introducing hydrogen and ammonia and joint formulation of technical standards for CCS (Carbon dioxide Capture and Storage).
AZEC members confirmed that they will summarize the common rules for calculating the effect of CO2 reduction through CCS. They will also consider consolidating monitoring methods for the selection standards of CO2 storage sites, storage capacity and after storage. Standardizing various rules could potentially expedite CCS projects and cost reduction in the region.
For decarbonized fuels such as hydrogen and ammonia, AZEC member states aim to establish a supply chain from production to consumption. They plan to hold operational level discussions and aim to compile concrete plans at AZEC Ministerial Meeting scheduled to be held in Japan next spring.