A company backed by Japanese home developer West Holdings Corp. is investing $1.3 billion in solar plants in Japan, because of the incentives offered by the country's feed-in tariff (FiT) program that went into effect July 1, reports Bloomberg.
Over the next five years, Japan Mega Solar Co. (formed by West Holdings in June) plans to build 250 plants with a combined capacity of 500 megawatts (MW).
The company is backed by 12 investors including Orix Corp. and solar manufacturers JA Solar Holdings Co. and LS Industrial Systems.
PV technologies made by JA Solar and LS Industrial will be given priority for installation in the new plants.
Japan's FiT requires utilities to pay $0.53 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) for 20 years for solar, triple the incentives offered by China and almost double the tariffs offered in Germany.
Japanese Citizens Support Nuclear Phaseout
Nuclear plants generated almost 30% of Japan's electricity before the meltdown and there's a move to shut down the industry permanently there.
As of mid-June, more than 7.5 million signatures were collected on a petition to end nuclear power entirely.
Recently, the Japanese government asked citizens for feedback on three scenarios for the country's future energy mix: one that calls for zero nuclear power, one calling for 15% and one calling for 20% to 25%, along with a mix of renewables and fossil fuels.
An overwhelming majority of citizens participating in 11 separate town hall meetings – 70% -- prefer the no nuclear option, reports Bloomberg.
The feedback from those polls will be used in developing Japan's new long-term energy policy, which could be drafted by the end of August.
For more on Japan's town hall debates:
