June 26, 2023
On June 24 (Sat.), 2023, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), with the support of the Economic Research Institute for ASEAN and East Asia (ERIA), held the First Asia Zero Emission Community Senior Officials Meeting (AZEC SOM) in Jakarta, Indonesia. Senior officials and other stakeholders of member countries came together for discussions to specify future cooperation in light of the outcomes of the AZEC Ministerial Meeting held in Japan in March 2023.
The First Asia Zero Emission Community Senior Officials Meeting (AZEC SOM)
Mr. MINAMI Ryo, Deputy Commissioner and Director general for International Policy on Carbon Neutrality, and Mr. KOBAYASHI Izuru, Deputy Commissioner for International Affairs, both from the Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, participated in the meeting as representatives of Japan. They discussed approaches to specifying AZEC’s future cooperation with the senior officials and other stakeholders of the countries that had participated in the AZEC Ministerial Meeting held in March 2023. As a special guest, H.E. Mr. Arifin Tasrif, Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Indonesia, attended the meeting and delivered a speech.
At the meeting, Japan explained the various support that it provided through Japanese governmental organizations under the framework of AZEC while showing its achievements and highlighting its intention anew to contribute to decarbonization in Asia. In addition, as specific measures for policy coordination, participants confirmed the implementation of efforts for [i] creation of a master plan on hydrogen and ammonia, [ii] development of technological standards for CCS, and [iii] further promotion of the Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM).
Based on policy coordination and support, Japan will expand the market of decarbonization technologies and reduce the cost involved, thereby advancing decarbonization in Asia together with AZEC partner countries.
Source: Meti