Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead and Osamu Tsukamoto, president of Japan Coal Energy Center, on Monday signed a memorandum of understanding committing to working together on issues related to coal trade, clean coal solutions, and carbon capture utilization and storage. The agreement will “give us the opportunity for our agencies, [the] University of Wyoming, [the] Wyoming Infrastructure Authority, and Business Council to reach out to JCOAL,” Mead said in a video posted by local radio station KGAB.
The Japan Coal Energy Center, which operates under the supervision of Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry, is comprised of roughly 120 member organizations, including Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Mitsubishi Hitachi Power Systems, Tokyo Electric Power Co., Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Metal Corp., and Toshiba.
The MOU will primarily be carried out by the University of Wyoming, the Wyoming Infrastructure Authority, and the Wyoming Business Council, working with JCOAL in areas including technical cooperation, research and development, communication and information exchange, and facilitating coal exports and sales.
“Japan is a leader in clean-coal power. Japan is looking to diversify its coal resources supply chain,” Mead said in a press release. “I am excited to partner with JCOAL and their member businesses to developing carbon solutions for the benefit of the world and in exploring ways to ship Wyoming’s coal to Japan. This partnership has great promise for Wyoming.”
Wyoming is the No. 1 producer of coal in the United States, with an output of 395.7 million short tons in 2014, 40 percent of the nation’s total production, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.