Japan’s leading news provider, The Nikkei, has reported that the country’s Prime Minister, Naoto Kan, is expected to confirm the plan, dubbed the "Sunrise Plan" initiative, in a statement on the nation's energy policy at the forthcoming G8 Summit opening this week in France.
While Mr Kan is expected to tell other leaders that Japan will continue to use nuclear energy following industry-wide improvements on safety standards, he will also reveal details of the new solar plan which will make it compulsory for all new buildings and homes to be fitted with solar panels by 2030.
The Nikkei’s report appears to indicate that Japan is refocusing its energy policy towards renewables, however it may also just be government spin, designed to divert attention away from the nuclear crisis at Fukushima. Back in January 2008, a remarkably similar piece of news was published by the leading news network, Kyodo News, saying pretty much exactly the same thing as now: that the Japanese government would aim for 30 per cent of all households to have solar panels installed by 2030 as part of its efforts to fight global warming.
In 2008, officials revealed to the Kyodo News that the number of solar-powered households would increase to 14 million from the then current 400,000, and the capacity of such generation would expand 30-fold from the current 1.3 million kilowatts.
Irrespective of whether or not this is just a case of recycling news for propaganda purposes, Naoto Kan has said this week that Japan’s push for a national solar array would not only release Japan from dependency on nuclear power and create a cleaner and safer energy source, but would also spur technological innovation in solar energy.
He also said that as well as pouring money into the solar industry to drive down costs and make the technology more accessible, the massive project would also promote wider uses of renewable energy.
Other energy sources being investigated by the government include geothermal, wind, biomass and hydropower, as the nation explores ways to increase its energy independence.
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