JGC Corporation, Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Company Inc., Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd., and Itochu Corporation have agreed on the creation of Japan DME Ltd., whose purpose will be to study the feasibility of a DME business. When up and running, the business will produce DME, a first its kind fuel. Overall investment in the new company is set at approximately US$ 850,000, with each of the four companies investing 25%.

Japan DME Ltd. has chosen Dampier, Western Australia as the target production location because the region is rich in natural gas from which DME is made. Aiming for the end of 2006 as a starting date for the business, Japan DME Ltd. is to proceed with a thorough investigation of the business's feasibility study, expected to take about a year.

The business is expected to require an overall investment of between US$ 500 Ð 600 million, and will have an annual production capacity ranging between 1,400,000 and 2,400,000 tons.

When burned, DME does not emit sulfur oxide or soot. Thus, DME is viewed as a next-generation clean energy for use as a power generation fuel alternative to LPG and diesel oil.