The Yomiuri Shimbun
The Japanese and Indian governments are set to agree on a strategic initiative on biogas that aims to introduce 1,000 new production plants across India, opening the door for Japanese automakers to supply 2.5 million vehicles powered by the fuel, it has been learned.
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi are scheduled to formalize the agreement during their summit on July 2.
Under the project, biogas will be mass-produced using resources, such as cattle manure, available in rural India in order to boost regional development.
The project also aims to drive growth in the Japanese automotive industry by creating new demand for the biogas-fueled cars.
Takaichi hopes to make the initiative a centerpiece that symbolizes a win-win relationship between Japan and India, timed with her first visit to the country since taking office.
Under the initiative, the facilities would be rolled out nationwide, initially focusing on 500 plants backed by about 400 billion yen in yen loans. Unutilized agricultural resources — such as cattle manure, sugarcane and rice straw — will be used to power production.
The produced biogas serves as fuel for compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles, an environmentally friendly option that the Indian government is actively promoting.
Should mass production be achieved, India's CNG vehicle market is expected to expand to 3.5 million units, with Japanese companies projected to capture about 70%, or 2.5 million units, of the total.
In a bid to counter China's head start in the electric vehicle market, Japan intends to use India as a stepping stone to launch a full-scale entry into the CNG vehicle sector.
The initiative also holds clear advantages for India, which expects to see an improvement in its energy self-sufficiency rate.
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This article is from The Yomiuri Shimbun. Neither Dow Jones Newswires, MarketWatch, Barron's nor The Wall Street Journal were involved in the creation of this content.
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