TOKYO: Japanese startups are offering services to help customers see how much carbon they are emitting at a time when the government commits to net-zero emissions by 2050.

The country’s corporate governance code requires companies listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Prime top-tier section to disclose how they are addressing climate change.

Smaller suppliers are being asked by clients to help with their efforts to reduce carbon emissions from entire supply chains to effectively zero.

In these circumstances, companies first want to know how much carbon they are releasing from their operations.

Asuene Inc., founded in 2019, launched a service last summer to help users manage emissions.

After users scan electricity and gas bills as well as gasoline receipts, the service, called Asuzero, automatically calculates the amount of emissions and offers advice on how to reduce it.

About 200 companies have introduced the service, according to Asuene. “We aim to have the service introduced by 10,000 companies in five years,” Asuene CEO Kohei Nishiwada said.

Asuene has been promoting the service in regional areas as well through collaboration with regional banks such as Hachijuni Bank, based in the central Japan city of Nagano.

Cuveyes Inc. has launched a service that indicates to users how much emissions linked to their movements were reduced.

The service automatically detects routes and transportation means taken by users carrying smartphones installed with a designated health promotion app.

It shows the amount of emission reductions achieved by users when they walked or bicycled instead of using transportation means that emit carbon.

Cuveyes expects the service to be used by companies to check how much carbon is emitted from commuting and business trips and by local governments to encourage residents to reduce emissions.

Cuveyes CEO Takayuki Natsume said that many people have less physical activity amid the COVID-19 pandemic. “The app can contribute both to improving health and addressing economic issues.”

JIJI Press