The Osaka Hikari-no-mori Project (Osaka Forest of Light Project) has now commenced following the announcement that it will be supported by a consortium of seven Japanese companies, namely Jupiter Telecommunications Co., Sumitomo Corporation, Sumitomo Electric Industries, Daihen Corporation, Hitachi Zosen Corporation, Rengo Co. and NTT Facilities.
The project — which has been described as a “mega-solar power generation project” — will be constructed at the Hokko Landfill Site in the Yume-shima district, Konohana-ku, in Osaka, Japan.
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In 2010 companies were invited to propose new ideas for the effective utilisation of the landfill site. Sumitomo Corporation and Sumitomo Mitsui Finance & Leasing Co. jointly proposed to develop a PV system at the site based on a Solar-power Group Share (SGS) which seeks contributions from a consortium of companies. This proposal was accepted and feasibility studies have been conducted to implement the plan.
The seven companies which make up the consortium aim to conclude a project agreement with the city of Osaka in order to commence work on the project later this month. The companies plan to develop a 10MW PV system at the site which is scheduled to begin operations by autumn 2013. The project will cover approximately 15 hectares of land at the site.
Electricity generated from the plant will be sold to Kansai Electric Power Co. under the recently launched feed-in tariff. The project will be financed by the seven companies while the proceeds from the sale of the generated electricity to the power company will be distributed to participating companies in proportion to the cost they bear.
The Osaka Hikari-no-mori Project has been set up in order to drive the creation of a sustainable community. The site will also be proactively used as teaching materials for environmental education.