Press Conference by Minister Muto (Excerpt)

*Note: This is a provisional translation for reference purposes only.

9:07 to 9:17 a.m.
Friday, March 7, 2025
Press Conference Room, METI Main Building

Opening Remarks

Bill for the Act for Partially Amending the Act on Promoting the Utilization of Sea Areas for the Development of Marine Renewable Energy Power Generation Facilities

To begin, I would like to mention two points.

First, today, a Cabinet Decision was made on the Bill for the Act for Partially Amending the Act on Promoting the Utilization of Sea Areas for the Development of Marine Renewable Energy Power Generation Facilities.

The Government of Japan has set a project formation target for offshore wind power generation of 30 million to 45 million kW by 2040. To achieve this target, we need to expand the areas subject to the installation of offshore wind generation facilities to the Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ) of Japan. This bill aims to advance procedures for this effort.

We will advance the bill toward the formation of large-scale projects in sea areas and work on fostering the offshore wind power generation industry through METI’s provision of support for developing technology and building supply chains.

Nuclear Emergency Response Headquarters’ decision (lifting evacuation orders from Iitate Village and Katsurao Village, Fukushima Prefecture)

Secondly, the Nuclear Emergency Response Headquarters held a meeting today and decided to lift evacuation orders from part of Iitate Village and Katsurao Village in Fukushima Prefecture.

It decided to lift the evacuation orders from the sites of compost manufacturing facilities and the farmlands surrounding them in Iitate Village on March 31 and from the sites for wind power generation projects in Katsurao Village on the same date.

This lifting of the evacuation orders is a good example of the use of regional resources leading to the reconstruction of Fukushima. We will encourage such reconstruction while respecting the intentions of the municipalities. The administrative staff will provide the details later.

Question-and-Answer Session

Minister Muto’s visit to the U.S.

Q: I understand that you are making arrangements to visit the U.S. soon. I expect that during your visit to the U.S., you will request the U.S. to exclude Japanese steel, aluminum, and automobiles from the application of additional tariffs. Could you comment again on the details that you intend to convey to the U.S. administration and the responses that you hope to receive from the U.S. side during your visit?

A: As you all know, the Trump administration in the U.S. has been promoting various tariff measures.

I recognize that we should carefully examine the specific details of all measures and their impact on Japan and appropriately address such measures, and this is very important. If the Diet permits, I would like to visit the U.S., and to this end, we are currently making arrangements for my visit, which has not yet been finalized.

I aim to hold discussions with the U.S. to develop a win-win relationship in terms of the national interests of both Japan and the U.S, while taking into account the opinions received from industrial players.

Japan-UK Economic 2+2 Ministers’ Meeting

Q: I understand that a Japan-UK economic 2+2 meeting will be held today. In light of the situation where the Trump administration announced a succession of tariff policies, what kind of discussions do you think Japan should hold with the UK side on the significance of free trade systems?

A: As you mentioned, we will hold Japan-UK Economic 2+2 Ministers’ Meeting for the first time today.

At the meeting today, Japan and the UK will hold discussions on a wide range of issues that the two countries face, including economic security, energy security, the promotion of free and fair international trading, and collaboration with the Global South.

This is not a meeting to address responses to any specific country. Japan and the UK are important partners that share fundamental values. Through this meeting, we would like to promote a wide range of economic collaboration.

Prior to holding the Economic 2+2 Ministers’ Meeting, METI will hold Japan-UK Strategic Economic Policy and Trade Dialogue with the Rr. Hon Jonathan Reynolds MP, Secretary of State for Business and Trade. At this meeting, the two sides will sign a memorandum of cooperation on offshore wind power.

LNG development in Alaska, the U.S.

Q: I would like to ask you about LNG in Alaska.

It was reported that during his State of the Union address on March 4, the U.S. President Trump said that some countries, including Japan and the ROK, are willing to invest several trillion dollars to become U.S. partners in building an LNG pipeline in Alaska. I would like to ask you about your views on this statement, including whether or not Japan has already expressed to the U.S. any specific intentions regarding investment, to put it bluntly. Moreover, concerning the topic that you were just asked about, I understand that you will visit the U.S. soon. Could you comment again on anything you would like to convey to the U.S. regarding the stance or policy of the Government of Japan?

A: Regarding the LNG project in Alaska, Japan and the U.S. confirmed at their summit meeting last month that the two countries will cooperate to enhance energy security between them in a mutually beneficial way.

If the supply of highly competitive LNG from the U.S. increases, as you just mentioned, this is expected to contribute to the diversification of Japan’s supply sources. For this reason, I believe that further LNG purchasing is a matter that the public and private sectors need to discuss while taking into account economic efficiency and timing for a start to that supply.

Regarding the details of the LNG project in Alaska, including developments in building a pipeline, I intend to question the stakeholders in the U.S. about it thoroughly. METI will develop a necessary environment so that the two countries can hold repeated discussions that will benefit both Japan and the U.S. I intend for my visit to become the start of this approach.

The significance of the Bill for the Act for Partially Amending the Act on Promoting the Utilization of Sea Areas for the Development of Marine Renewable Energy Power Generation Facilities and the significance of the Japan-UK memorandum of cooperation on offshore wind power

Q: First, I would like to ask you about the Cabinet Decision made on the generation of wind power energy as renewable energy in Japan’s EEZ. I understand that the revision of the Act is to expand the introduction of related facilities to the EEZ. Could you comment on the significance of this decision and your expectations for this?

In addition, you mentioned that you and Secretary Reynolds of the UK will sign a memorandum of cooperation (MOC) on offshore wind power. Could you comment on your expectations for signing the MOC with the UK, too?

A: As an initial approach to expanding the introduction of offshore wind power, the establishment of the bill is very significant, in particular, against the backdrop that Japan should develop systems for so-called floating offshore wind power generation that can be constructed in deep sea areas, including such zones in Japan’s Exclusive Economic Zones or EEZ. This bill will also allow the government to take advantage of the Green Innovation Fund to conduct large-scale demonstrations, aiming to establish technology that can be mass-produced at low cost.

It is also important that Japan establish a domestic supply chain that bolsters the offshore wind power generation industry. Accordingly, we will proactively provide support measures, including subsidies for companies’ capital investment and support for developing training bases for human resources.

Regarding the Japan-UK cooperation on offshore wind power, Secretary Reynolds and I will sign a memorandum, and some industrial players of the two countries are also scheduled to conclude memoranda of cooperation today. I believe that it is extremely significant that the U.K., which ranks second in the world in terms of the introduced amount of offshore wind power, and Japan, which has one of the world's largest-level of sea areas, to collaborate in the field of offshore wind power.

Specifically, Japan-UK collaboration in the development of offshore wind power projects, demonstration projects and joint research and development for floating-type facilities, and the establishment of supply chains, is of great significance to both parties.