Ricky Sakai on Transparency, Technology, and Scaling Low-Carbon Solutions for Heavy Industry

Product-level carbon accounting is being hailed as a game-changer. How does transparent emissions data unlock competition, innovation, and investment in low-carbon technologies? 

Currently, there is no universal, product-level standard for measuring carbon emissions across industries, making it difficult to accurately assess emissions intensity, compare alternatives, or reward genuinely low-carbon solutions. As a result, markets rely heavily on high-level corporate disclosures or qualitative claims, which provide limited insight into the actual carbon performance of individual products. 

Establishing transparent and comparable product-level carbon accounting standards—ideally led by the private sector—represents a critical first step toward solving this challenge. The private sector is best positioned to define practical methodologies that reflect real operating conditions, supply-chain complexity, and technology constraints. Once common standards are in place, industries can align across value chains, share data with confidence, and benchmark performance on a consistent basis. 

Importantly, transparent emissions data transforms decarbonization from a compliance exercise into a competitive market dynamic. When carbon intensity becomes measurable and comparable at the product level, customers can make informed purchasing decisions, investors can direct capital toward proven low-carbon technologies, and innovators are rewarded for delivering real emissions reductions rather than aspirational targets. Over time, this creates a virtuous cycle in which clear carbon metrics drive competition, accelerate innovation, and scale solutions that can deliver meaningful emissions reductions across heavy industry. 

 

MHI provides the technologies that help industrial operators decarbonize. Can you share an example of a solution—like hydrogen, carbon capture, or advanced energy systems—that has moved from concept to meaningful, measurable impact? 

A clear example of MHI’s technologies moving from concept to measurable impact is its work in hydrogen and carbon capture across the power and industrial sectors. In Utah, MHI is developing pioneering green hydrogen production and storage facilities in collaboration with Chevron. This project enables a neighboring power plant operator to blend hydrogen into its fuel mix, directly reducing emissions while maintaining reliable power generation. What began as a concept for integrating hydrogen into existing infrastructure has now progressed to on-the-ground deployment, demonstrating a practical pathway for decarbonizing gas-fired power. 

In parallel, MHI is advancing carbon capture solutions through multiple Front-End Engineering Design (FEED) studies across gas power generation, cement, and steel facilities in the United States and Europe. These translate decarbonization ambition into bankable, engineering-ready projects by defining capture performance, costs, and integration with existing assets. 

Importantly, several of these CCUS projects have progressed beyond studies to reach Final Investment Decision (FID). Once operational, they are expected to reduce millions of tonnes of CO₂ emissions, delivering tangible, verifiable impact. Together, these examples illustrate how MHI helps industrial operators move from early-stage decarbonization concepts to commercially viable solutions with measurable emissions reductions at scale. 

 

Breakthrough technologies often stall between pilot and deployment. How does MHI approach scaling innovations to deliver real-world climate impact across industries and regions? 

MHI has been actively collaborating with startups that bring innovative technologies to decarbonize energy and industrial infrastructure. While these solutions often perform well at the pilot stage, a major challenge arises when moving toward commercial-scale deployment, where securing financing becomes significantly more difficult due to technology risk, integration complexity, and limited operating track records. 

To address this gap, MHI positions itself not simply as a technology supplier, but as a scaling partner. By applying its engineering expertise, system integration capabilities, and experience delivering large-scale industrial projects, MHI supports startups in scaling their technologies from pilot to commercial operation. This includes engineering design, performance validation, and integration with existing assets. 

Equally important, MHI helps share and reduce risk—both technical and commercial—thereby improving project bankability. By standing alongside project developers and investors, MHI enables promising innovations to move beyond demonstrations and attract the capital required for large-scale deployment. Through this approach, MHI helps transform breakthrough technologies into financeable projects that can deliver real-world climate impact across industries and regions. 

 

Hydrogen is often called essential for decarbonizing heavy industry. What are the biggest barriers to scaling hydrogen globally, and how is MHI helping to build the hydrogen ecosystem? 

The first and most fundamental barrier is cost. Clean hydrogen—whether produced via electrolysis or low-carbon reforming—remains significantly more expensive than fossil alternatives. Electricity prices, utilization rates, and capital intensity dominate economics, and in many regions low-cost, firm clean power is simply unavailable at scale. Second is the bankability challenge: projects struggle to reach final investment decision due to weak offtake commitments, unclear price indexation, and evolving definitions of “clean hydrogen.” Without long-term contracts and stable policy frameworks, financing remains difficult. Third, infrastructure gaps are severe. Hydrogen requires new pipelines, compression, storage, ports, and in many cases conversion to carriers like ammonia, each adding cost and complexity. Permitting, safety regulation, and public acceptance further slow deployment, while fragmented global standards increase risk for cross-border trade.  

MHI is addressing these barriers by focusing on system-level de-risking and ecosystem approach. Through facilities such as the Takasago Hydrogen Park, MHI validates hydrogen production and utilization as an integrated system rather than isolated components. Its hydrogen-capable gas turbines enable decarbonization of firm power, a critical enabler for both industry and large-scale electrolysis. Beyond technology, MHI emphasizes standardized, bankable solution packages and long-term partnerships to help build complete hydrogen and ammonia ecosystem. In doing so, MHI is not only supplying equipment, but actively shaping the ecosystem required for hydrogen to scale globally. 

 

Partnerships between technology providers, industrial operators, investors, and policymakers are often cited as critical. How can these collaborations move solutions from pilot projects to widespread adoption? 

Partnerships allow risk, cost, and responsibility to be shared in a coordinated way. 

Early collaboration helps generate credible operational data, making solutions more likely to scale beyond demonstrations. Technology providers can refine designs based on practical feedback, accelerating the transition from bespoke pilots to standardized systems. 

Investors play a key role in bridging the financing gap between pilots and commercial projects. While first-of-a-kind projects are often too risky for traditional project finance, strategic investors, corporate partners, and public funding can absorb early risk. As performance and cost become proven, capital can progressively shift toward lower-cost, large-scale financing. 

Policymakers reduce uncertainty by providing clear standards, permitting pathways, and incentive frameworks informed by real project experience. When policy is aligned with industry and technology realities, it enables confidence to invest at scale. 

Together, these partnerships transform pilots into bankable, scalable solutions by aligning technology readiness, financing, and regulation turning innovation into infrastructure.