[Event Report] JETRO Held a Webinar on Fuel Cells and Storage Batteries to Promote Carbon Neutrality

On June 30, JETRO held the 16th Regional Ecosystem Seminar, "Advancing Carbon Neutrality with Fuel Cells and Battery Storage" (Note 1) . The webinar was held with the aim of further expanding collaboration and fostering new business opportunities between regional ecosystem stakeholders in Japan (Note 2) and foreign companies and foreign-invested companies, amid growing interest in fuel cells and storage batteries that support stable energy supply and efficient energy use in realizing a decarbonized society (Note 3). A total of 293 participants from domestic and overseas companies, local governments, organizations, and universities attended.

At the webinar, Vietnamese startup Alterno and Bloom Energy Japan, the Japanese subsidiary of U.S.-based Bloom Energy, presented their respective initiatives in Japan.

Alterno is a startup that develops and provides the "Sand Battery," a sand-based thermal energy storage system, and established its Japanese subsidiary in Tsukuba City, Ibaraki Prefecture, in 2025. The company is advancing product localization and R&D tailored to Japanese technologies and customer needs, while promoting demonstration projects and partnerships aimed at decarbonization.

Alterno introduced its innovative clean energy solutions, highlighting both its sand-based thermal energy storage system—which efficiently supplies zero-emission heat for drying applications—and its ongoing development of electrical energy storage systems (small-cell electrical batteries). The company emphasized its technologies' advantages, including low cost, high efficiency, and high safety with zero fire or explosion risks.

Alternō also shared its vision for future deployment in Japan, with a particular focus on data centers and agricultural greenhouses. In addition, the company reported that it is advancing collaborative research efforts with partners to expand cooperation and promote wider adoption of both its thermal and electrical battery technologies.

Bloom Energy Japan introduced Bloom Energy's solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) technology that provides highly efficient power generation while enabling the utilization of high-temperature waste heat, along with examples of its deployment in Japan and other countries around the world. According to the company, its fuel cells are gaining attention as disaster-resilient distributed power sources that can generate electricity on-site, amid rapidly growing electricity demand driven by the expansion of data centers and other factors. The company also emphasized that it can contribute to reducing CO2 emissions through carbon capture and CHP (combined heat and power) systems that simultaneously generate electricity and useful heat.

Participants in the webinar commented, "The webinar provided insights into changing market demand for storage batteries and fuel cells in Japan driven by the growing adoption of artificial intelligence (AI), as well as a glimpse of the emerging startup ecosystem," and "The use of thermal energy storage systems is particularly interesting. It helped us to understand that fuel cells are increasingly being put to practical use in data centers."