Marubeni Corporation, PERU LNG S.R.L., a liquefied natural gas business operator in which Marubeni participates, and Osaka Gas Co. Ltd., have signed a joint study agreement (hereinafter, "this agreement") to analyze and evaluate the feasibility of synthetic methane production in the Republic of Peru (hereinafter, "Peru") and its sales to the potential markets including Peru and Japan.
Methanation is a technology that produces methane, the main component of natural gas, through a synthetic reaction of green hydrogen produced from renewable energy and CO2 extracted from industrial facilities. Since emissions of CO2 generated by the use (combustion) of synthetic methane are offset by the CO2 separated and recovered as part of the methanation process, methanation is expected to be a technology that can help achieve carbon neutrality in the gas industry.
Since existing gas infrastructure and facilities can be used for synthetic methane, methanation has great potential to achieve carbon neutrality in the gas industry. In addition, the Japanese government announced the Sixth Strategic Energy Plan in October 2021, and in order to reach carbon neutrality in the gas industry, they plan to start injecting more than 1% of synthetic methane into Japan’s gas lines by 2030 and expand it to 90% by 2050.
Through this agreement, the three companies will jointly analyze and evaluate the feasibility of methanation project in Peru, where renewable energy is abundant.
For the purpose of mid-term and long-term contributions to global climate change actions, Marubeni has set a long-term climate change vision formulated in March 2021 and a Green Strategy in the Mid-Term Management Strategy “GC2024” in February 2022.
