ABOITIZPOWER Corp. has partnered with JERA Co. Inc. to explore the feasibility of co-firing ammonia on coal-fired plants, and hydrogen on liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities, it said on Thursday.

In a press release, the company said it was targeting to start the study next year and come up with the results in a decade. The initiative is part of its plan to further reduce carbon emission during thermal power generation, it added. JERA will start a 20% ammonia generation demonstration test in Japan in 2023 before gradually increasing it to 50% by 2028, AboitizPower said.

The company said it was also trying to get financial support for its ammonia co-firing feasibility study from the Ministry of Trade and Industry of Japan. AboitizPower said that aside from renewable energy (RE) sources, developing LNG to power projects is also deemed vital to meet the country's power needs. The Department of Energy (DoE) is positioning LNG as a necessary transition fuel while the renewable energy infrastructure is being built.