Take our user survey and make your voice heard.
Tokyo Electric Power Co will build a solar power plant in the US state of California through its subsidiary Eurus Energy Holdings Corp, according to a report. It plans to begin operations at the 1000 kilowatt plant by 2010 on a site yet to be selected, the Nikkei business daily reported over the weekend.
Eurus, already engaged in wind power generation in the United States, wants to take advantage of incentives expected to be provided by the new U.S. government to boost solar power generation nationwide, Nikkei said.
Tokyo Electric is one of four Japanese corporate giants moving into the U.S. renewable energy market with solar and wind power technologies, the daily said.
Petroleum wholesaler Showa Shell Sekiyu KK will start selling solar cells in the United States in June at the earliest after establishing a sales network there, the report said.
The unit of Anglo-Dutch giant Royal Dutch Shell will ship cells from a plant now under construction in Miyazaki Prefecture, southern Japan.
Sanyo Electric Co is set to expand the solar cell production capacity of its Mexican plant, which assembles products for the North American market, by 150% to 50,000 kilowatts, the daily said.
In anticipation of growing U.S. demand, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd will raise its domestic production capacity for wind turbines by about 30% to 1.6 million kilowatts possibly by March 2010, Nikkei said.
The $787 billion U.S. economic stimulus package, which was passed on Tuesday, earmarks $38 billion for investments in the environmental and energy sectors. It also provides $20 billion in tax incentives to spur private-sector investment in this area.
© Wire reports
15 Comments
Login to comment
Marion Wm Steele
I wonder if anyone will have the guts to question whether this solar plant will be built with the Billions of dollars supplied by Obama's stimulus plan.
bamboohat
I question whether this solar plant will be built with the Billions of dollars by Obama's stimulus plan.
electric2004
Looking at the numbers: wind power in the order of 1000 MW (MegaWatt) and solar power in the order of 1 MW (MegaWatt). Compare this with the power output of a conventional nuclear power plant (1GW = 1000 MW), and then it is easy to see, which would be the way to go.
anshin
I wonder how the electriciy produced, gets to Japan
nath
Build them here and lower the cost of electric. Damn electric is so costly here.
almxxx
Compare the cost, when one of these Nukes goes boom! Not to mention disposal of the waste.
presto345
I generate 50% of my electricity needs (about 3600 kWh annually) with solar panels on the roofs. Additionally there is a solar water boiler. This goes to show that more investment in this clean energy technology is worth doing. Comparing the output of a nuclear power station with the output of wind turbines does not cut it. Those interested in wind energy may want to have a look here: http://www.awea.org/projects/
electric2004
Very good.
Yes, and many thanks for the wind energy data. Of course, wind does not blow every-time. However, wind power plants are a mature technology. And the more of them are used at the right place, one can decrease the amount of power plants using non-regenerative fuel.
WilliB
Nope, the stimulus plan is there to stimulate ACORN and reward friends and cronies.
Nessie
Saving the Yanks from theyselves? A PR gamble? Or economically feasible?
Time will tell.
goingtoshopping
The West is the Best, Baby... Get here, and we'll do the rest.
Ah, Jim Morrison had it right. Plenty of sun in SoCal. Smart move.
PepinGalarga
photovoltaics are inneficient for large installations. Using mirrors to concentrate energy on a cylinder of oil or water to move a turbine is much more efficient and less expensive. Mirrors are not made of silicon...
presto345
That's why PV panels should be installed on (all) new houses as an integral part of the roof. Standard installment greatly reduces costs. Tax breaks are desirable.
Elbuda Mexicano
I am surprised to see that Q Cells of Germany is not mentioned in this article, since it is also 1 of the world's largest companies dealing with this solar type of business.
motytrah
Republicans and Bush passed billions in tax incentives to oil companies who needed no incentive at all and in the long term gives money to enemies of the US. Democrats and Obama passed incentives for something that's actually useful for the US Economy and the US energy policy. Sounds like a good use of a tax incentive to me.