Japanese turning to clean energy, and energy efficiency, in a big way

The World’s Next Hot Solar Power Market May Be Japan HUFFINGTON POST: 07/25/2012 With its nuclear power plants virtually shuttered since the Fukushima disaster in March 2011, Japan is starting to turn to clean energy in a big way.

On July 1, one of the world’s most aggressive examples of a feed-in tariff (FIT) — a key government incentive for renewable energy — took effect in Japan. A FIT essentially requires utilities to buy kilowatt-hours of electricity from clean, renewable sources like solar, wind, and geothermal at a rate prescribed by the government. Such policies have been behind the rapid growth of solar energy in countries like Spain, Italy, and Germany. No one thinks of Germany for its sunshine, but it’s actually the largest solar energy market in the world, with 25 gigawatts of solar capacity installed (output comparable to about 20 large nuclear reactors) at the end of 2011…..

Japan’s future will be one of imported oil and natural gas, energy-efficiency measures, and an increasingly large share of clean energy. Already a world leader in grid performance and energy efficiency, Japan has aggressively ramped up those efforts since the Fukushima disaster. Many buildings are going without air conditioning in the hot and humid summer, launching a new business attire called Cool Biz (no jackets and ties) in Japan’s traditional buttoned-down business culture. One of my talks, at a prefectural building in Nagoya, was an official Cool Biz event, although not Super Cool Biz — that’s Hawaiian shirts and sandals.

lthough solar on residential rooftops will benefit from the generous FIT rates, the biggest boom will be in multi-megawatt, utility-scale installations that have lagged in Japan in recent pre-Fukushima years. They currently account for only 20 percent of all solar energy in Japan, by far the lowest percentage of any major solar market in the world; the rest is residential. But those numbers will soon shift with large projects underway such SB Energy’s 111 MW Tomakomai plant on the northern island of Hokkaido and, in a fitting symbol of Japan’s energy transition, several Toshiba installations totaling 100 MW right in Fukushima.

FITs tend to be tricky and controversial, and Japanese officials will monitor their new tariff closely to prevent a boom-and-bust situation. Analysts such as Izumi Kaizuka, manager of the research division at solar PV consultancy RTS Corp. in Tokyo, predicts it will be reduced next spring. But whatever the subsidy level, Japan is a sure bet for significant near-term growth for solar — and a closely-watched model for any nation seeking a cleaner energy future. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/clint-wilder/next-solar-power-market_b_1610805.html

July 26, 2012 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | Japan, renewable

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