Kyocera Corporation, K.K. Gaia Power, Kyudenko Corporation and Century Tokyo Leasing Corporation have announced that they would invest in Kanoya Osaki Solar Hills LLC to construct and operate a 92-megawatt (MW) solar power plant.
The plant will be built on a site stretching across Kanoya City and Osaki Town in Kagoshima Prefecture. The project will be one of the largest solar installations in Japan.
The planning for the project began in January 2014 following which the locals expressed that the land should utilised effectively for the project. The site was originally assigned to a golf course but the plan was later abandoned.
Spread over 2, 000, 000 square meters, the plant will accommodate 340, 740 Kyocera solar modules and is expected to generate 99,230MWh of electricity annually, which is enough to power approximately 30,500 households. This would also offset around 35,730 tons of carbon dioxide emissions per year.
Kanoya Osaki Solar Hills LLC will operate the site while the joint venture established by Kyudenko and Gaia Power will undertake the design, construction and maintenance of the solar installation.
Around 35 billion yen (approx. 290 million US Dollars) investment has been planned for the project with the construction set to start in the second half of FY2016 (October 2015 to March 2016). The operations are expected to begin by FY2018 (April 2017 to March 2018).
The land development application for the project was submitted in April 2015 along with a year-long environmental impact assessment.
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The installation will contribute to the local community through job creation and increase in tax revenues in Kanoya City and Osaki Town.
The companies are cooperating with Kagoshima Prefecture, Kanoya City and Osaki Town to ensure environmentally friendly construction methods and remain committed to promoting renewable energy.