Five companies join consortium developing US$1.8 billion 480 MW solar project in Japan
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SPCG Public Company Limited, Tokyo Century Corporation, Furukawa Electric Company Limited, Tsuboi Corporation and The Eighteenth Bank Limited have joined the Photovolt Development Partners (PVDP) consortium in its initiative to develop a 480 MW solar power project on the island of Ukujima (Sasebo City, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan).
PVDP, formerly consisting of Kyocera Corporation, Kyudenko Corporation and Mizuho Bank began planning the solar power project in April 2013. It has been agreed that the feed-in tariff (FIT) rights will be transferred from PVDP to a newly established special purpose company Ukujima Future Energy Holdings G.K..
The consortium plans to invest approximately JPY200 billion (US$1.8 billion) in the project, and aims to start construction before March 2019. It will utilize approximately 1,650,000 Kyocera high-output multicrystalline silicon solar modules to create a 480MW system that will generate an estimated 515,000 MWh per year.
Ukujima Future Energy Holdings G.K. plan to obtain the land required for the construction and operation of the solar plant through a land management company. This company will lease agricultural land or deserted arable land on Ukujima from the respective owners, and then sublease the land to a subsidiary of the consortium.
Furthermore, some of the solar systems will be constructed on stilts, so that the land may be used for both power generation and agriculture. The project is intended to contribute to the environmental protection and economic revitalization of the remote island, which has a population of only 2,000. The development of the island’s agricultural base is an crucial factor in the latter.
A 64km undersea cable between Ukujima and the island of Kyushu will be constructed, enabling all power produced to be sold to the local utility company, Kyushu Electric Power Co., Inc. This aligns with the national FIT program for renewable energy.
