Japan's energy efficiency momentum starts plateauing

The country is eyeing 30% efficiency by 2030 but the road to its target is a bit rocky at the moment.

The Japanese government targets to establish a state-of-the-art energy supply-demand structure within a market of high prices that the government expects to endure for the medium to long-term.

According to its 2006 energy strategy, it plans optimising energy use by slashing oil dependence and turning towards more renewable energy projects. The current target is to boost energy efficiency by 30% between 2006 and 2030, however Tadashi Mogi, Director of Policy Planning Division, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Department, Agency for Natural Resources and Energy, said that despite Japan's lead in efficiency versus other countries, its momentum is currently plateauing, alarming the government.

"The Energy Conservation Frontrunner Plan sets a strategy to achieve this energy efficiency target, through strategic planning in both the medium- and long-term. It establishes a plan to develop energy conservation technology and the development and dissemination of a benchmarking approach, so that the energy conservation effect can be quantitatively verified," he explained in a keynote session at the World Smart Energy Week 2018. "We need to have a thorough promotion of realising this and pushing the speed forward as we can't afford to moderate."

The World Smart Energy Week 2018 is currently being held in Tokyo, Japan from 28 February to 2 March.