Japan, U.S. plan tie-up in environment, energy fields

[FarCenter]

The Yomiuri Shimbun - http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/dy/national/20090329TDY01305.htm

The Japanese and U.S. governments will form a comprehensive tie-up to jointly study state-of-the-art technologies in eight fields including solar power generation and biofuels, it was learned Saturday.

Related bodies will sign a memorandum as early as April and launch a joint public-private taskforce, according to sources.

Japan and the United States hope to play a leading role on key global issues by strengthening collaboration between the two countries in the environment and energy fields--two areas seen as likely to be of increasing economic importance to both nations.

The two countries agreed during a summit meeting in February between Prime Minister Taro Aso and U.S. President Barack Obama that they would enhance technical cooperation to promote alternative energy sources and next-generation automobiles. The agreement is seen as the first step in further efforts to consolidate cooperation in these sectors, the sources said.

The tie-up includes Japan's National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology in Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture; and five U.S. national research centers; including the Los Alamos National Laboratory in New Mexico, which falls under the jurisdiction of the U.S. Energy Department, they said.

The eight fields include solar power generation; production of biofuels from plant cellulose, excluding grains; and carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS)--a technique for capturing CO2 generated from, for example, thermal power stations, and storing it underground.

<snip>