Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company PJSC – Masdar (Masdar), INPEX CORPORATION (INPEX), Tokyo Gas Co., Ltd. (Tokyo Gas) and Osaka Gas Co., Ltd. (Osaka Gas) announced they have signed a collaboration agreement to conduct a joint feasibility study on e-methane production in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Masdar and INPEX have been conducting a joint study to produce e-methane utilizing low-cost renewable energy in Abu Dhabi based on an agreement signed on July 17, 2023.
Tokyo Gas and Osaka Gas have newly joined this initiative, and through it plan to offtake e-methane in volumes equivalent to 1% of each company’s annual city gas demand. Tokyo Gas and Osaka Gas are aiming to introduce e-methane to cover 1% of their respective annual city gas demand by 2030 and further increase the introduction volume from the total of their worldwide projects toward 2050.
The four partners will evaluate the economics of producing and procuring feedstocks, such as green hydrogen and CO2, as well as the production and transportation of emethane. The overall reductions in CO2 emissions will also be evaluated.
Applications are also expected in the power generation and transportation sectors. Masdar, INPEX, Tokyo Gas and Osaka Gas aim for the early establishment of an emethane supply chain from the UAE to Japan to contribute to the UAE and Japanese governments’ shared goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050.
To remind, earlier this month, Gasum and Nordic Ren-Gas announced that they will bring renewable e-methane to market starting 2026. The e-methane will be produced using renewable electricity from Finnish wind power and biogenic carbon dioxide captured from existing power plants.
