Japan buys 30 mln tonnes of CO2 rights from Ukraine

* Ukraine is Japan's first govt-to-govt CO2 offset partner

* Governments agree on clean-technology transfer from Japan

* Another similar deal to come

By Risa Maeda

TOKYO, March 18 (Reuters) - Japan on Wednesday sealed a deal to buy emissions rights from Ukraine, marking its first deal via a government-to-government trading scheme under the Kyoto Protocol and paving the way for another similar deal soon.

Kiev will deliver 30 million tonnes of so-called Assigned Amount Units (AAUs) to Japan, with the sale's proceeds earmarked for six specific environmental measures in Ukraine, including renewable energy projects, the Japanese government said in a statement.

The other five areas are energy conservation, utilisation of coal bed methane, shift to cleaner fuels, pollution reduction and reduction of other greenhouse gases than carbon dioxide.

The value of the deal was not disclosed.