Japan to test hydrogen-fueled power generation from Feb.

December 10, 2017

Kobe- Japanese companies on Sunday completed hydrogen-fueled power generation equipment that will supply electricity and heat to nearby public facilities in a demonstration test in Kobe from early next February.

The test, to be conducted on the western Japan city's manmade Port Island, is billed as the first one in the world in which electricity obtained through hydrogen power generation will be supplied to users in an urban area.

Participants, including Kawasaki Heavy Industries Ltd. and Obayashi Corp., aim to start providing the equipment and related technologies to clients, mainly for use at factories, by fiscal 2020.

"We'll put safety first and work carefully and steadily, in order to put hydrogen-fueled electricity generation into practical use," Kawasaki Heavy President Yoshinori Kanehana told a ceremony to mark the completion of the equipment.

The equipment can generate up to 1.7 megawatts of electricity per hour. It will supply electricity and heat to four facilities including a hospital and a sports center.

The participants hope to identify the most efficient share of hydrogen in the fuel in order to reduce the costs and carbon dioxide emissions, by testing pure hydrogen fuel and mixtures of hydrogen and natural gas.

Hydrogen is clean energy that does not produce heat-trapping CO2 when burned.

The industry ministry aims to realize the full-fledged introduction of hydrogen-fueled power generation in Japan by around 2030. The key hurdle is high procurement costs for hydrogen.

Obayashi President Toru Shiraishi suddenly canceled his attendance at the ceremony. The general contractor was recently searched by public prosecutors for alleged misconduct in tenders related to a project to build a magnetic levitation Shinkansen train line. Jiji Press