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2024/06/25

Mr. Saito Ken, Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry, visited the Tomakomai CCS Demonstration Center on June 22, 2024.

On Saturday, June 22, Mr. Saito Ken, Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan, visited Tomakomai City, Hokkaido, and inspected the Tomakomai CCS Demonstration Center and the demonstration test ship for liquefied CO2 transportation, “EXCOOL”. After the visit, he exchanged views with Tomakomai City Mayor Hirofumi Iwakura and other members of the local community.

At the press conference, Minister Saito said, “The Tomakomai CCS Demonstration Project is the world’s first CCS project in the vicinity of an urban area and serves as a role model. The learnings from the Tomakomai Project will be very important for the commercialization of CCS in various regions in the future.

The government will continue to listen carefully to the voices of the local communities and support their efforts while enhancing various policies toward the commercialization of CCS.

The demonstration test ship for liquefied CO2 transportation, “EXCOOL” is equipped with the world’s first low-temperature, low-pressure tanks that enable a larger loading capacity. We aim to leverage the results of the demonstration to establish transportation technology at a scale of multiple tens of thousands of tons by FY2026.”

*The tour of “EXCOOL” was conducted by Nippon Gas Line Co., Ltd.

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Top: Press conference at the Tomakomai CCS Demonstration Center
Middle: Demonstration test ship for liquefied CO2 transportation, “EXCOOL” (Tomakomai Port)
Bottom: Minister Saito (left) listening to explanation on the roof of the Tomakomai CCS Demonstration Center</