A Hydrogen-based Society: Can Japan Promote Green Hydrogen Production in Asia?
- English
- Climate Change, SDGs
Hydrogen has disruptive potential as a clean fuel in numerous energy and non-energy applications. The efficient deployment of hydrogen and fuel cell technologies can potentially play a key role in Asian economies’ acceleration towards ambitious decarbonisation targets. Japan has advanced hydrogen technologies and is aiming to expand these solutions domestically and overseas, in support of a new hydrogen infrastructure value chain. These plans are consistent with Japan’s aspirations to lead the world in creating a “hydrogen-based society”. It will require adapting existing technologies to diverse contexts as well as generating a higher level of interdependence with countries that could play an important role in the value chain. This session aims to deliberate about three critical aspects. First, it aims to discuss the existing policies and technologies for hydrogen development in Asia. Second, it will examine the economic, technological, as well as geopolitical dimensions of a potential hydrogen society in Asia. Third, considering the importance of green hydrogen, the session will consider a cooperative regional framework for promoting its use. The development of green hydrogen and the contribution it makes to clean energy development will positively contribute to helping countries accelerate towards net-zero.
Research Manager/Leader for Co-Innovation Technology Transfer, Climate and Energy Area, IGES
Nandakumar Janardhanan
Research Manager/Leader for Co-Innovation Technology Transfer, Climate and Energy Area, IGES
Dr. Nandakumar Janardhanan is Research Manager and Leader for Co-Innovation Technology Transfer at the Climate and Energy Area in the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies (IGES), Japan. He specialises in energy and climate policy and has research interests in energy geopolitics, renewable energy and nuclear power. He has also been associated with several policy think tanks, research organisations and universities of international repute.
Director, Energy Markets and Security, International Energy Agency (IEA)
SADAMORI Keisuke
Director, Energy Markets and Security, International Energy Agency (IEA)
Keisuke Sadamori took up his duties as Director of the Office for Energy Markets and Security at the International Energy Agency in October 2012. Previously, he held the post of Deputy Director General for Policy Co-ordination at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) in Japan. He had been involved with the IEA for a number of years as IEA Governing Board Representative for Japan and as Co-Chair of the Standing Group on Long Term Co-operation. Over the years, Mr Sadamori has served in the Cabinet of the Prime Minister of Japan and has co-ordinated numerous important projects, including work following the Fukushima-Daiichi accident in March 2011.
Director General, New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO)
OHIRA Eiji
Director General, New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO)
OHIRA Eiji is the Director General of the New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO)’s Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Technology Office In this capacity, he is responsible the overall strategy, execution and coordination of NEDO’s research, development and demonstration project on fuel cell and hydrogen.
He has also coordinated fuel cell and hydrogen activities with international stakeholders, through International Energy Agency’s Technology Collaboration Program (IEA TCP: Advanced Fuel Cell & Hydrogen), and International Partnership for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells in the Economy (IPHE).
He joined the NEDO in 1992, just after graduation from the Tokyo University of Science. He served as a visiting scholar at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1997-1998.
Before taking up the current position in April 2013, he served in several positions, including Representative at NEDO Asian Representative Office, Director of the Energy Storage Technology Division.
Director for Innovation and Technology, International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA)
Dolf Gielen
Director for Innovation and Technology, International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA)
Dolf Gielen is IRENA Director for Innovation and Technology since 2011. He has more than 25 years of experience with energy transition strategy development and implementation as well as technology policy in an international context. He has a PhD from Delft University of Technology in Delft, The Netherlands.
Programme Director, Climate and Energy Area, IGES
TAMURA Kentaro
Programme Director, Climate and Energy Area, IGES
Dr. Tamura obtained PhD in International Relations from the London School of Economics (LSE). After working for the Yokohama National University, he joined IGES in 2003. He has centred his research on international cooperation on climate change, in particular the development and design of international climate regime, political economy and comparative studies of domestic climate and energy policy making processes in major economies. He published a number of peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters and edited books in the field of climate and energy policy.
Special Policy Advisor, IGES
MORI Hideyuki
Special Policy Advisor, IGES
Mr. Hideyuki Mori is a graduate of the School of Engineering, Kyoto University. He joined IGES in 2003 and served as the Executive Director from 2010 to 2020. Prior to joining IGES, he served as Environment Specialist at the Asian Development Bank (ADB), Senior Environmental Coordinator of the United Nations High Commissioner of Refugees (UNHCR), Director of the Office of Research and Information at the Global Environment Issues Division of the Environment Agency of Japan (current Ministry of the Environment), and as Portfolio Manager of the Division of Global Environment Facility (GEF) at the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). He was a professor at Keio University from 2008-2010. He served as Executive Director of IGES from 2010 to 2020, and has taken the position of the Special Policy Advisor of IGES since November 2020.
