Goverment

The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) announced it will finalize a renewable energy development roadmap setting out Japan's policy on renewables by the end of this year. With an eye to developments overseas, the roadmap will include wind power and other technologies in addition to those, such as solar, carbon capture and storage (CCS), and nuclear, that the Japanese government has already positioned at the heart of the country's renewables strategy.

The New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) has selected 19 companies for a smart grid joint demonstration project that will be conducted by New Mexico state government in five cities in New Mexico. NEDO will be directly involved in aspects of the project in two cities.

The New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO), an incorporated administrative agency under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), has drawn up Battery RM2010, an R&D roadmap for lithium-ion batteries, to provide companies with an overview of the directions of R&D themes.

Aiming to position Japan as a pacesetter in smart grid construction and promote the country's smart grid technology in markets worldwide, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) announced that it has selected four areas - the three cities of Yokohama, Toyoda and Kitakyushu, plus Kyoto Prefecture - as testbeds for preliminary implementation of smart grids.

With the aim of combining public- and private-sector strengths to sell Japan's technology and systems to emerging smart-grid-related markets worldwide, the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) established yesterday the Japan Smart Community Alliance (JSCA), whose 287-strong membership comprises companies, universities and other organizations.

Japanese mobile phone carriers are in an uproar as the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC) disclosed earlier this month its intention to lift the subscriber identity module (SIM) lock of mobile phones by the end of this year. As mobile phones in Japan are locked to one carrier and users cannot change carriers with the same handset, unlocking SIM would have a big impact on carriers' business.

"Japan's energy self-sufficiency ratio was just 4.1% in 2007 according to the IEA estimate, which is the lowest ratio among major developed countries. To compensate for this fragile energy procurement structure, renewable energy is indispensable," said Toru Ishida, Director-General of the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, in his keynote speech for three events - FC EXPO, PV EXPO and Battery Japan - held concurrently in Tokyo last week. He overviewed Japan's energy situation and the challenges.

Wataru Aso, governor of Fukuoka Prefecture, announced that two semiconductor-related R&D institutes would begin operation next spring in Fukuoka, in his opening remarks at the Silicon Sea Belt Summit in Fukuoka 2010, held Feb. 23-24.

Eight Japanese companies and an R&D foundation have formed a consortium named the R&D Partnership for Future Power Electronics Technology (FUPET) to develop silicon carbide (SiC)-based high-performance power devices. The four-year R&D project will be funded by the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) as one of its Green IT Projects.

The New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) will present the results of the Grants for Young Researchers scheme at Innovation Japan 2009 to be held at the Tokyo International Forum from Sept. 16-18.