TOKYO -- Trading house Sumitomo Corp. is looking to mass-produce biodiesel in Japan using wood and sugarcane waste, in a bid to give the hard-to-make renewable fuel more of a foothold in the country.
The Japanese trading house plans to open a demonstration plant in 2025 on the southern island of Tanegashima with the University of Tokyo and Solariant Capital, a U.S. renewable energy development and investment company. After testing and getting mass production underway, the company plans to gradually increase output starting in fiscal 2027, aiming to eventually reach 1 million tonnes per year.
