On December 12, Iwatani Corporation agreed with Toyota Tsusho and JGC Holdings to implement the hydrogen production business using the raw material derived from waste plastics near the Port of Nagoya. It is planned to build a hydrogen plant having an output capacity of 11,000 t/y (approx. 15,000 m3/h) with an aimed completion in middle 2020s.

The three companies have been researching (NEDO-consigned project) as to the production of low-carbon hydrogen and utilization in the urban area since December 2021. As a result, they have ascertained there is a high potential in the Chubu Area represented by Nagoya from both viewpoints of recycling of waste plastics and utilization of such hydrogen. They have decided to start to examine the production of hydrogen derived from waste plastics at this time.

As for the hydrogen production method used by three companies this time, they adopt the EUP (Ebara Ube Process) of which license JGC possesses. This process gasifies waste plastics by partial oxidization with oxygen and vapor, so that a synthetic gas consisting of hydrogen and carbon mono-oxide can be generated.

Resonac Corporation Kawasaki has been opening its gasification plant using the process since 2003, and is producing ammonia derived from waste plastics.
As the plant requires an air separation facility for purging the oxygen as the oxidizing sources for partial oxidization as the oxidizing source for partial oxidization, it is now necessary to consider to introduce the equipment.

The plan includes recycling of 80,000 t of waste plastic yearly to generate hydrogen of 11,000 t/y for an anticipated demand over the area from now on. They will supply the generated hydrogen by pipeline to power generating plants and also other hydrogen consumers like mobilities in the vicinity after liquefaction.

Now that the attempt is originated to utilize waste plastics as raw material which has so far been thrown away any use, the CO2 generated from the process has a so high purity that say it would be utilized also for CCS or CCUS.