TOKYO -- Japanese parliament on Wednesday turned into law Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga's pledge to go carbon neutral by 2050, setting in motion a technology race that will determine its economic standing in a post-carbon world.
At the forefront of that race are solid-state batteries, a technology that is considered a safer alternative to the lithium-ion batteries that are now used for electric vehicles. With Toyota Motor, Panasonic and Idemitsu Kosan leading the world in related patents, Japan has a real chance of taking the lead in the field.
