Russia and Japan to collaborate on biomass project

As part of the Russia-Japan Investment Fund (RJIF), the Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) and JBICIG Partners (a subsidiary of the Japan Bank for International Cooperation) have agreed to 'collaborate and consider' potential investments in Russia’s bioenergy industry. The forestry company RFP Group from Russia and investment company Prospect from Japan have also signed onto the agreement.

The group plans to work on a facility to process waste from the timber industry into wood pellets. The plant is to have a total production capacity up to 135,000 tonnes per year. Construction is expected to start in the summer of 2018, with operation in 2019. There is scope to expand the capacity of the plant and construct of additional facilities with a capacity around 500,000 tonnes per year.

A ‘significant’ volume of the pellets is to be exported to Japan, which supports the use of biomass for energy production through a feed-in tariff.

The Russia-Japan Investment Fund was established to promote economic, trade and investment cooperation between Japan and Russia. Focuses for the fund include healthcare, smart cities, sustainable technologies and energy. Activity also supports cutting-edge technologies, developing industries and export in the Russian Far Eastern District.