Nissan is the first automaker in Japan to come forward with an E10 vehicle fully compliant with the safety, environment and technical guidelines issued by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. The Murano E-10 is officially recognised as Japan's first Ministry-authorised E10 vehicle.

Within the scope of the Tokachi project, Nissan will support research related to the E10 engine’s combustion efficiency and exhaust emissions. Vehicle performance data collected will further the development of E10 bio-ethanol powertrains and allow the engineers to identify key areas for improvement, in order to accelerate the commercialisation of bio-fuels and E10 vehicles in the marketplace.

Tokachi Zaidan2 is the recipient of a technology grant by the Ministry of Environment, aimed at addressing issues related to global warming and fossil fuel dependence, via the promotion of bio-fuels as an alternative energy source. 

The Tokachi project uses substandard wheat and sugar beet to produce bio-ethanol, which helps minimise impact on food supplies. The project has the capacity to produce 15,000 kilo-litres of bio-ethanol to substitute up to one percent of the gasoline consumption in Hokkaido per annum.

Bio-ethanol is considered a renewable energy source because it is derived from plants such as sugar-cane or soybean, and thus does not add to the net CO₂ level in the atmosphere3, as opposed to fossil fuel. In the U.S. and Brazil, bio-ethanol has been commercialised for many years and is gaining wider acceptance worldwide.

Its participation in the Tokachi project is in line with its Nissan Green Program 2010 mid-term environmental plan, aimed at developing new technologies, products and services that can lead to real-world reductions in vehicle CO₂ emissions, cleaner emissions, and recycling of resources.