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A good business move for Japan – from nuclear to solar?

new solutions for solar power installation in Japan’s relatively small geographic areas. “The [irradiated] agricultural land near the Fukushima power plant is no longer usable, so why don’t we convert that into solar plants?” …alculation from Japan’s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology: “Rice produced on one hectare of land yields a yearly revenue of 1.58 million yen, while a solar plant on the same surface would generate a revenue of 7.5 million yen.”

Why Japan’s Shift Away from Nuclear Is Good for Business,  TIME,  By Lucy Birmingham / Tokyo Wednesday, May 18, 2011 “…….New legislation is expected to help diversify the nation’s energy portfolio. A new feed-in tariff (FIT) will oblige utility companies to buy all the power generated through renewable sources connected to a grid, at fixed, premium rates.

Prices are different depending upon the type of renewable energy. Japan’s first FIT scheme in 2009 created a market for electricity generated by homeowners that installed solar power systems. The expanded tariff will go into effect on a full commercial scale in Japan next April, and will include solar PV, wind, bio-mass, geothermal and small hydropower projects. “With mandated pricing, regulated by law, anyone that goes into business and produces power, regardless of how they do it, knows there is a marketplace for the power,” says Giuffre. “There are a lot of people lining up to do projects.”……
Geothermal, wind, biomass and small-scale hydropower projects all have potential in Japan, but for now, solar looks like the fastest way to add more power to the national grid.

In the 1980s, Japan was once the world’s top solar power producer and has strong government policies in place to promote it, but has since fallen behind on installing large-scale solar projects. Gaetan Borgers, who leads the global solar business for Dow Corning Toray in Tokyo, says the March 11 disaster has generated new solutions for solar power installation in Japan’s relatively small geographic areas. “The [irradiated] agricultural land near the Fukushima power plant is no longer usable, so why don’t we convert that into solar plants?” he asks. He cites a convincing calculation from Japan’s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology: “Rice produced on one hectare of land yields a yearly revenue of 1.58 million yen, while a solar plant on the same surface would generate a revenue of 7.5 million yen.” With changes in Japan’s land use law, struggling agricultural farmers could become profitable solar farmers.Why Japan’s Shift Away from Nuclear Is Good for Business – TIME

May 19, 2011 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | decentralised, Japan