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Japan ramps up funding for green tech
Modi and Japanese PM Shigeru Ishiba pledged to forge deeper ties at a Tokyo summit, even as the full spectrum of 50% US tariffs on Indian exports took effect this week
NEW DELHI: A new phase of Indo-Japan cooperation and investments, announced during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ongoing visit to Tokyo, will see efforts to ramp up clean energy production from agricultural residue, and to cut emissions and reliance on crude oil, according to officials familiar with the development.
Modi and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on Friday pledged to forge deeper ties at a Tokyo summit, even as the full spectrum of 50% US tariffs on Indian exports took effect this week.
The visit saw Japan pledge investments of $68 billion in India, across areas such as clean energy, mobility, semiconductors and AI.
Sojitz Corporation, in partnership with Indian Oil, has lined up an investment of $395 million to establish 30 biogas plants using feedstock from farm wastes that will produce 1.6 million tonnes annually, according to the people cited above. Sojitz Corporation has invested in a special purpose company, IOC GPS Renewables Pvt. Ltd.(IGRPL), set up jointly by GPS Renewables Pvt Ltd and Indian Oil Corporation Ltd, the country’s largest state-owned oil company.
“Farmers will supply crop residues and agri-waste for the plants through contracts at remunerative prices. Through this business, IGRPL plans to have 30 biomethane plants operational in India by 2026-27,” a spokesperson of the company said.
Agricultural cooperation between the two countries has been pivoting towards green energy. Suzuki Motor Corporation has set up a partnership with the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) for a major biogas push.
“Suzuki R&D Center India, a subsidiary of Suzuki Motor Corporation, is investing in NDDB Mirda Ltd., which is the NDDB’s biogas subsidiary to establish dung-based compressed biogas plants in Gujarat. Suzuki’s initial investment is aimed to acquire a 26% equity stake in NDDB Mirda, with potential to increase its stake to 49% later,” an NDDB spokesperson said.
The venture will produce compressed biogas for vehicles to augment rural mobility and help contribute to carbon neutrality, he said. Four biogas plants in Banaskantha district of Gujarat, set up with an investment of slightly over ₹200 crore are poised to start production this year.
