Commencement of the Operation of a Biogas CDM Project in Thailand
2007-02-15
Toyota Tsusho Corporation (Head Office: Nakamura-ku, Nagoya, President: Junzo Shimizu) and Tokyo Electric Power Company, Inc. (Head Office: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, President: Tsunehisa Katsumata, hereinafter referred to as "TEPCO") have been constructing a Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) project facilities to recover methane from a tapioca starch factory in Kalasin Province, northeastern part of Thailand, through Cassava Waste To Energy Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "CWTE"), an operating company, invested by Toyota Tsusho Corporation, TEPCO and Clean Energy Development Co. (Thailand) Ltd. We hereby report that the construction work has been completed and operation is commenced today.
Cassava, a raw material used in tapioca starch production, is widely grown in Thailand, where it is the second most important agricultural product. Tapioca starch factories produce organic wastewater that releases methane which has been released to the atmosphere up to now with no legal restrictions on these emissions.
In this project, the CWTE establishes methane recovery equipments, digesters and other facilities. Significant reduction in greenhouse gas emission is achieved by recovering methane and selling it back to the factory as biofuel which is burned in a boiler and by reducing the heavy oil usage in the factory.
Toyota Tsusho Corporation and TEPCO have reached agreement with the CWTE to purchase carbon credits from this project respectively. Until December 2012, the purchase volume is expected to be approximately 564,000 tons (CO2 equivalent) (338,000 tons for Toyota Tsusho Corporation and 226,000 tons for TEPCO).
Toyota Tsusho Corporation and TEPCO have previously taken proactive initiatives to reduce greenhouse gases in Japan and abroad through carbon credit purchases and other means. This project marks as the companies? first direct investment and participation in a CDM project operator.
Toyota Tsusho Corporation considers the environment as one of its main fields of endeavor and believes that promoting its environmental businesses will contribute to building a sustainable society. The company looks forward to greater involvement in recycling and in products designed to reduce global warming and protect the environment.
Taking steps to help prevent global warming has become one of the most important priorities in TEPCO's management. As such, TEPCO continues to promote global warming countermeasures in Japan and abroad. These include electricity supply-side and demand-side initiatives in Japan and the purchase of carbon credits made available through overseas project cooperation including CDM.
press release (original)(206KB)
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