Japan’s Top Utility Pilots Ammonia Use to Reduce Coal Emissions

Japan’s top power producer Jera Co. is piloting a controversial emissions reduction technology that substitutes a portion of coal with ammonia for electricity generation, according to a company statement.

Jera started the first of its kind demonstration at its Hekinan Thermal Power Station in the Aichi prefecture on Monday, along with manufacturer IHI Corp. The utility aims to replace 20% of coal heating value with fuel ammonia in its large-scale, commercial power plant.

The experiment’s outcome will dictate whether Japan can scale up its plans to use ammonia in coal power plants as a way to help meet its net ...