japan

The Japan Renewable Energy Foundation (JREF) has voiced concerns that a tender process for PV expected to be introduced next year could cap deployment at just 2GW to 3GW a year in what is currently still the world’s second biggest market for annual installations.

Solar Frontier believes it could make some of Japan’s as-yet-unbuilt utility-scale solar projects economically viable, as the company’s partnership with Goldman Sachs-affiliate Japan Renewable Energy prepares to take on 300MW of projects within the next five years.

Developers in Japan with large-scale PV projects in the pipeline have been given just over a year to prove their projects will go ahead, or will lose their feed-in tariff (FiT).

A 45.6MW DC solar farm in northern Japan has been switched on by Japanese financial services group Orix Corporation and its joint venture (JV) partner Sharp.

Century Tokyo Leasing Corp has acquired a 15% stake in French developer Ciel & Terre International in order to produce floating-solar technology, according to a report from Bloomberg Business.

Global PV capacity is expected to grow by 13% next year, the slowest rate of growth since 2012, according to Mercom Capital’s latest market forecast.

Brazil’s Development Bank (BNDES) has raised US$100 million from three Japanese banks in order to invest in clean energy projects.

SB Energy, the offshoot of telecoms group Softbank, and conglomerate Mitsui are close to flipping the switch on a 111MW PV array in northern Japan.