Weekly Japanese Industry and Policy News (June 15- June 21, 2024)

The EU-Japan Centre is pleased to start a new weekly service by publishing brief summary of the latest information from the Japanese governmental organizations & private companies/organizations. A couple of minutes reading to be informed about what is happening in Japan's policy, economy, EU-Japan relations, and innovation.

*Information is deemed correct at the time of release. 

Minister of State for Economic and Industrial Policy, Mr. Ishii, held talks with Deputy Foreign Minister Mr. Kravik of the Kingdom of Norway
On Monday, June 17th, Minister of State for Economic and Industrial Policy, Mr. Ishii, held talks with Deputy Foreign Minister Mr. Kravik of the Kingdom of Norway, discussing the future development of bilateral economic relations.
During the meeting, they welcomed the elevation of bilateral relations to a strategic partnership last December and the signing of the "Green Strategy Partnership Joint Communiqué" between the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Fisheries of Norway. They acknowledged the progress in cooperation in sectors such as offshore wind power and CCS (Carbon Capture and Storage), and confirmed their commitment to continue government-to-government cooperation to promote collaboration between companies of both countries. Additionally, they discussed cooperation in the field of economic security.
METI (in Japanese): 
https://www.meti.go.jp/press/2024/06/20240617003/20240617003.html

Mitsui to Invest in India's Leading Metal Recycling Company
Mitsui & Co., Ltd. has decided to invest in MTC Business Private Ltd., one of India's leading metal recycling companies. After the investment, MTC will become an equity method affiliate of Mitsui.
MTC has over 30 metal recycling locations across India and is involved in the collection, segregation, processing, transportation, and distribution of ferrous and non-ferrous scrap. As the leading company in the industry, one of the directors of MTC serves as the President of the Material Recycling Association of India.
In recent years, amid accelerating economic growth and population increase, infrastructure development, including highway and high-speed railway projects, is advancing in India and significant expansion is expected in its manufacturing industries, such as in automobile production. To meet the anticipated increase in demand for steel, India's steel making industry, which supports the growth of the Indian economy, plans to expand its production capacity. Demand for metal scrap is also forecast to increase over the medium to long term as a recycled raw material that contributes to the decarbonization of the steel industry. MTC is expanding its business by utilizing the collection network it has built up over many years of operation and the relationship of trust it has cultivated with its business partners. Further, MTC plans to make a full-scale entry into the recycling business for end-of-life vehicles, which is expected to see significant growth over time, and it is aiming to become an integrated recycling company capable of processing a wide range of waste materials, including used batteries.
Mitsui & Co.: https://www.mitsui.com/jp/en/release/2024/1249295_14372.html

Canon develops high-performance materials for perovskite solar cells to improve substantial durability and mass-production stability
Canon Inc. announced today that it has developed a high-performance material which is expected to improve the durability and mass-production stability of perovskite solar cells. The company will further develop the technology and aims to initiate mass production in 2025.
The key characteristic of this material is its ability to cover the perovskite layer thickly while maintaining a high rate of photoelectric conversion efficiency, which has been difficult with conventional materials. The material can be coated at a thickness of 100-200 nm, whereas the conventional coating layer is several tens of nm*. Through joint research with Professor Dr. Tsutomu Miyasaka, inventor of the perovskite solar cell and faculty member at Toin University of Yokohama, a performance evaluation was conducted, the results of which verified its potential to improve the durability of perovskite solar cells and showed promise in advancing the stability of mass production. It is anticipated that solving these hurdles will help contribute to more widespread use. “By adding a layer of this newly developed high-performance material to the layer structure of these cells, we can expect to solve the issue of mass production,” said Professor Miyasaka.
Canon: https://global.canon/en/news/2024/20240618.html

AEON aiming for CO2 reduction through paperless with electronic receipt introduction in about 4,000 stores 
AEON announced that from June 21st, it will expand the implementation of "electronic receipts (receipt-less functionality)" and sequentially begin offering it at approximately 4,000 stores across 19 group companies. Electronic receipts digitally convert receipts typically provided on paper, allowing customers to review their shopping history on their smartphones. By transitioning to electronic receipts, Ion Group estimates an annual reduction equivalent to approximately 78,000 rolls of paper, when converted to trees. Electronic receipts can be used by presenting Ion's total app "iAEON" at participating stores during shopping. Additionally, the functionality to save electronic receipt images on smartphones is included, enabling support for returns and receipt issuances similar to paper receipts.
AEON (in Japanese): 
https://www.aeon.info/wp-content/uploads/news/pdf/2024/06/240613R_1_1.pdf

Visualization of GHG Emissions for Shizuoka Prefecture Companies: NTT DATA and Enshu Shinkin Bank Commence Collaboration
NTT DATA (Koto-ku, Tokyo) announced on June 14th that it will start providing the platform "C-Turtle" to support the calculation and management of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions for enterprises, in collaboration with Enshu Shinkin Bank (Hamamatsu City, Shizuoka Prefecture). This initiative aims to assist Shizuoka Prefecture companies in decarbonization efforts.
Under the service scheme, Enshu Shinkin Bank will first grasp the challenges and needs related to GHG emissions calculation of client enterprises. NTT DATA will utilize C-Turtle to calculate emissions from Scope 1 to 3, reflecting efforts to reduce emissions by suppliers in their own emissions. This will visualize the GHG emissions of client enterprises and lead to accurate and efficient analysis towards reduction.
NTT Data (in Japanese): https://www.nttdata.com/global/ja/news/topics/2024/061400/

Denka Invests in Startup for Commercializing Carbon Nanotubes
Denka (Chuo-ku, Tokyo) announced on June 18 that it has invested in Carbon Fly (Koto-ku, Tokyo), a startup company engaged in the research, development, manufacturing, and sales of next-generation carbon nanotubes (CNTs).
CNTs are characterized by their honeycomb structure, where carbon atoms are arranged in a cylindrical shape. They are extremely thin, with a diameter only 1/50,000th the thickness of a human hair. CNTs are expected to be used as fundamental materials in various fields, including electrical paste for lithium-ion batteries, aerospace, mobility, and energy.
Carbon Fly is a material venture company established in January 2022 by materials scientists. In CNT development, the company has succeeded in controlling high-quality CNTs, which has been a longstanding challenge, and has established technologies that lead to mass production.
Going forward, Denka will collaborate on joint development to improve performance by combining Carbon Fly's CNTs with Denka Black for lithium-ion battery applications. In the future, Denka will support the development of technologies to produce CNTs from CO2 as a raw material and will utilize this to build a supply chain for lithium-ion batteries.
Denka (in Japanese): 
https://www.denka.co.jp/storage/news/pdf/1237/20240618_denka_Carbon%20Nanotube.pdf