Sep 29 2010
The Japanese Trade and Industry Ministry has issued a draft proposal which will make it binding on the power utility businesses to purchase the entire power produced from renewable energy sources such as geothermal, wind, biomass, hydropower and solar power generated by the private companies.
Presently the utility companies purchase only the excess solar power generated from the PV panels erected at houses.
The government is planning to bring in a new legislation on the basis of the draft proposal from the financial year of 2011. The utility companies will separately communicate the cost of electricity produced from the renewable power sources on the monthly power bills. After the completion of ten years, each family will be asked to pay an extra amount of 150 to 200 yen over and above their monthly bills. Though the bill seems to be a right step to expand the usage of renewable energy sources, the government needs to convince the opposition to pass the bill in the Diet.
The plan suggested by the ministry has some inherent problems. The government has already set a standardized purchase price to buy power generated from all the renewable energy sources except for solar power whose power production cost is high. The renewable energy power producers are looking forward for a price that is not only just uniform but also matches the use of technology, prevailing local situations and size of the renewable energy market. They anticipate a system that will allow developing of an aggressive and competent renewable energy market to induce economic growth and employment opportunities
As per the recent Renewables 2010 Global Status Report released in July, Japan stands in the 6th place in renewable energy production and its total production just matches one seventh of the renewable power produced by China and one eighth of that of Germany.
Source: http://www.meti.go.jp/