Japan solar rooftop sector receives boost from Orix

Japan's largest leasing and diversified financial services conglomerate intends to invest US$686 million on solar rooftop projects in the next three years.

Tokyo-based Orix Corporation said the projects to receive its investments will have a combined capacity of 200MW. Of the total, some US$381 million will go to building solar power stations and US$305 million to lease rooftop space from factories and warehouses for solar installations.

The plans follow Japan’s recent introduction of Feed-in tariff rates for clean energy in an effort to cut its dependence on nuclear power after the Fukushima nuclear catastrophe last year.

The new Feed-in tariff rates for solar at US$0.53 per kWh for 20 years, about triple the amount industrial users paid for electricity in the 12 months prior to March.