japan solar

Japan will need to have 689GW of total installed capacity for solar and wind power generation by 2050 to reach the goal of net zero, according to a study conducted by BloombergNEF (BNEF).

Japanese conglomerate Itochu Corporation has announced a plan to invest US$2 billion in renewable energy generation assets in the US and Canada.

Japan’s 13th solar auctions have been heavily undersubscribed as developers struggle with land availability, support levels and familiarity with power market access, according to Shulman Advisory, a Tokyo-based renewables analyst agency.

Renewables developer and sustainability services provider Enfinity Global has secured ¥29 billion (US$242 million) in long-term financing for three recently completed utility-scale solar plants in Japan totalling 70MW.

Spanish developer X-Elio has been awarded 15MW of solar PV capacity in Japan’s first feed-in premium (FiP) auction.

Japan is forecast to have 111GW of installed solar by 2025 under a business as usual scenario, with this rising to 154GW by 2030. If it were to aim higher, however, under an ‘accelerated scenario’, it could hit 115GW of installed PV by 2025 and top 180GW by 2030, according to a new analysis by RTS Corporation.

Japan’s Jera Co, a joint venture between Tokyo Electric Power Group (TEPCO) and the Chubu Electric Power Group, and Japanese solar construction firm West Holdings Corporation (West HD) have agreed to develop 1GW of solar PV in Japan over the next five years.

Japan is aiming to have 108GW of solar capacity by 2030, 1.7 times higher than the country’s previous target.

Despite dozens of net-zero targets being announced and deployment of renewable energy ramping up globally over the past year, just 10% of countries have shown “steady and consistent” progress in their energy transition plans, according to a new report from the World Economic Forum (WEF).

A round-up of solar news from throughout the holiday period including independent power producer Sonnedix's global expansion, US Solar Fund's solar-plus storage investment, and MPC Capital’s completion of a 6.4MWp solar project in El Salvador.