KEPCO completing work on world’s largest rooftop solar plant in Thailand

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
The rooftop solar installation will have a capacity of 22MW. Credit: Falken Tyre

The Kansai Electric Power Company (KEPCO), a Japanese electricity supplier, is completing work on a 22MW rooftop solar installation in Thailand that, when completed, will be the largest rooftop solar project by capacity in the world.

KEPCO is building the project in the Amata City Rayong industrial park, southwest of Bangkok, on a tire factory owned by Japanese firm Sumitomo Rubber Industries. Electricity generated at the rooftop project will be used to power the factory, part of Sumitomo’s plans to halve its scope one and two carbon dioxide emissions by 2030, compared to 2017 figures.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Unlock unlimited access for 12 whole months of distinctive global analysis

Photovoltaics International is now included.

  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Unlimited digital access to the PV Tech Power journal catalogue
  • Unlimited digital access to the Photovoltaics International journal catalogue
  • Access to more than 1,000 technical papers
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

While KEPCO began construction in March, the news was announced by the Thailand Board of Investment (BOI) this week.

The board is a government body which aims to encourage foreign investment into Thailand, and is optimistic about the future of the Thai energy sector. The BOI expects the KEPCO project to come online in 2025, and noted that, in the first six months of 2023, 186 of the 195 power generation applications made to the BOI were related to renewable power.

“Thailand is the frontrunner in Southeast Asia,” said Shuji Hashuzume, a principal investment specialist at the Asian Development Bank. “Climate change is the biggest agenda globally now and Asia is the epicentre of carbon emissions. Thailand will likely be leading the initiative in ASEAN and its importance cannot be over-emphasised.”

Projects such as these will be important for Thailand’s long-term energy future, as it remains heavily reliant on fossil fuels. In 2022, natural gas accounted for 114.6TWh of electricity production, by far the most of any power source. The second-most productive source was coal, which accounted for 35.5TWh of electricity, well ahead of renewables, which were responsible for 21.9TWh, the fourth-most of any power source.

The installation of rooftop solar could also be a vital step in diversifying Thailand’s solar sector, with much of its solar generation tied to hydropower plants. Solar panels at the Sirindhorn Dam, for instance, offer a capacity of 58.5MW, and the Thai government plans to produce 2.7GW of power from hybrid hydro-solar plants by 2037, which will account for 30% of the country’s total energy demand.

As a result, the KEPCO rooftop project could be an important proof of concept for both foreign investment in Thai solar power, and the efficacy of solar projects outside of hydro-solar facilities.

Read Next

May 23, 2025
TotalEnergies has commissioned its largest solar portfolio in Europe, a collection of five assets in Spain with a combined capacity of 263MW.
May 20, 2025
Solar PV additions have slowed down in the first quarter of 2025 in India, with 6.7GW, according to a report from Mercom India Research.
May 20, 2025
SOLV Energy has announced plans to build more than 6GW of new utility-scale solar and storage capacity in the US.
May 16, 2025
Expanding the grid infrastructure of ASEAN countries could unlock 24GW of new solar capacity, according to Ember Climate.
May 15, 2025
GCL Tech has received an environmental accreditation for a manufacturing facility, while Redsolar and CMEC-GL have announced new projects.
May 14, 2025
Solarcycle has signed a recycling agreement with RWE Clean Energy to use its recycling system for 'many' of the latter’s products.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
June 17, 2025
Napa, USA
Solar Media Events
July 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
July 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
July 8, 2025
Asia
Solar Media Events
September 16, 2025
Athens, Greece