Japan's New Plan to Become a Hydrogen Society: Will Japan Succeed?

Behling, Noriko Hikosaka

doi:10.1149/06501.0001ecst

Cited by 3 publications

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“…We analyze resource allocation patterns among projects by the National Research and Development Institute of New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO, Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa, Japan). NEDO is one of the public research-funding agencies in Japan; it has invested more than 200 billion yen in the technical development of hydrogen-related technologies, such as fuel cells, after 1993 [28][29][30][31].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transition Analysis of Budgetary Allocation for Projects on Hydrogen-Related Technologies in Japan

et al. 2020

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Hydrogen technologies are promising candidates of new energy technologies for electric power load smoothing. However, regardless of long-term public investment, hydrogen economy has not been realized. In Japan, the National Research and Development Institute of New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO), a public research-funding agency, has invested more than 200 billion yen in the technical development of hydrogen-related technologies. However, hydrogen technologies such as fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) have not been disseminated yet. Continuous and strategic research and development (R&D) are needed, but there is a lack of expertise in this field. In this study, the transition of the budgetary allocations by NEDO were analyzed by classifying NEDO projects along the hydrogen supply chain and research stage. We found a different R&D focus in different periods. From 2004 to 2007, empirical research on fuel cells increased with the majority of research focusing on standardization. From 2008 to 2011, investment in basic research of fuel cells increased again, the research for verification of fuel cells continued, and no allocation for research on hydrogen production was confirmed. Thereafter, the investment trend did not change until around 2013, when practical application of household fuel cells (ENE-FARM) started selling in 2009, in terms of hydrogen supply chain. Hydrogen economy requires a different hydrogen supply infrastructure, that is, an existing infrastructure of city gas for ENE-FARM and a dedicated infrastructure for FCVs (e.g., hydrogen stations). We discussed the possibility that structural inertia could prevent the transition to investing more in hydrogen infrastructure from hydrogen utilization technology. This work has significant implications for designing national research projects to realize hydrogen economy.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transition Analysis of Budgetary Allocation for Projects on Hydrogen-Related Technologies in Japan

et al. 2020

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Betting on Hydrogen: Japan’s Green Industrial Policy for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells

Uriu

2021

International Political Economy Series

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METI’s Miraculous Comeback and the Uncertain Future of Japanese Industrial Policy

Noble

2021

The Oxford Handbook of Japanese Politics

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If the industrial policy of Japan’s Ministry of International Trade and Industry (MITI) gained acclaim for having created an “economic miracle” in the 1950s and 1960s, a spirited counterattack arose in the 1980s, and by time of the bursting of the financial bubble in the 1990s, industrial policy increasingly looked like an outmoded and discredited relic. Events then took an unexpected turn: MITI (since 2001 called the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, or METI) managed to turn a series of bureaucratic and political reforms and upheavals into opportunities for institutional rebirth, while once-proud Japanese companies struggled. Yet in Japan’s aging, slow-growth economy, reigniting dynamism has proved difficult. Efforts to enhance economy-wide productivity have made some progress, but have yet to overcome the obstacles to growth. METI’s expanded jurisdiction and reinforced political support have been matched by demands to enhance the viability of Japanese firms to meet the new competitive pressures and security threats from China and Korea, and even the United States. In some cases, notably the electronics industry, industrial policy has ended up bailing out failing firms. In the crucial automobile industry, in contrast, industrial policy has made significant contributions even as the leading firms have gone global, but METI has received little credit. Continued political support is not guaranteed. Outside Japan, the international financial crisis of 2008–2009, the failure of many developing countries to surmount an apparent middle-income trap, and the rise of China have converged to spark renewed interest in industrial policy and the experience of Japan.

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Japan's New Plan to Become a Hydrogen Society: Will Japan Succeed?

Abstract: Japan's government and industry have

Cited by 3 publications

References 2 publications

Transition Analysis of Budgetary Allocation for Projects on Hydrogen-Related Technologies in Japan

Transition Analysis of Budgetary Allocation for Projects on Hydrogen-Related Technologies in Japan

Betting on Hydrogen: Japan’s Green Industrial Policy for Hydrogen and Fuel Cells

METI’s Miraculous Comeback and the Uncertain Future of Japanese Industrial Policy

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