Japan's coal tech for Asia questioned by U.K. and Canada

Ministers opt for hard line on fossil fuels ahead of G-7 climate meet

20230414 Steven Guilbeault  Grant Shapps Interview

Canada's Minister of the Environment and Climate Change Steven Guilbeault, left, and the U.K.'s Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero Grant Shapps. (Photos by Shoichiro Taguchi and Yuki Kohara)

SAYUMI TAKE, Nikkei staff writer

TOKYO -- Ahead of the Group of Seven meeting on climate and energy in Japan this weekend, ministers from Canada and the U.K. pressed for a strict "collective" stance against the use of coal power, setting up a clash with Tokyo's strategy for reducing carbon emissions from Asian coal plants.

High on the agenda is for members to agree to move away from coal for power generation. But in the drafting process, Japan has asked for support for ammonia co-firing, which lessens the environmental impact of coal plants by mixing in ammonia, a gas that does not emit CO2 when burned.

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