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Overseas Expansion of Desulfurization Equipment - Development from 1998 to the 2020s In 1998, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Hitachi, leading Japanese companies, began exporting desulfurization equipment to the Asian market. Demand grew particularly strong in Taiwan and South Korea, with plans to install 200 units in Taiwan and 150 units in South Korea by 2025. These units efficiently remove sulfur oxides (SOx) generated by power plants and steel mills, contributing to regional air pollution control. Employing wet scrubbing technology, they chemically absorb SOx using limestone as an absorbent. The resulting byproduct, approximately 100,000 tons of gypsum annually, is reused as construction material, helping reduce industrial waste.

Furthermore, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries formed a technical partnership with Taiwan Power Company (Taipower) to adapt to local environmental standards. In South Korea, Korea Southeast Power adopted units capable of removing over 95% of SOx. This was expected to reduce SOx emissions in South Korea by approximately 150,000 tons annually. With an eye on entering the European market, technological improvements were also advanced to meet regional environmental standards.

Entering the 2020s, Japanese companies further intensified the overseas expansion of desulfurization equipment. Mitsubishi Power, a subsidiary of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, secured an order for two of the world's largest flue gas desulfurization (FGD) units for Serbia's Nikola Tesla B coal-fired power plant, with operation scheduled to commence in 2024. This power plant has an output of 1.34 million kW, and each FGD unit installed can process flue gas up to 670,000 kW. The introduction of these FGDs is expected to reduce SO₂ emissions by 96%, achieving levels below 130 mg/Nm³, compliant with the EU's new Industrial Emissions Directive (IED) standards.

Mitsubishi Power has delivered over 300 FGD units globally. In 2019, it secured the top market share of 37.2% in the FGD market. Cumulatively over the six years from 2014, it achieved a 37% share with a total capacity of 51.01 million kW. In the Asian market, amid rising demand for Air Quality Control Systems (AQCS) in emerging economies like China and India, Mitsubishi Power contributes to regional environmental improvement through technology transfer and guidance.

In this way, Japanese companies continue to play a vital role in improving the global environment and realizing a sustainable society by leveraging desulfurization technology.