New Energy Development Co., Ltd. ― Generating renewable energy through effective use of woody biomass

What is The Feed-In Tariff Scheme(FIT)?

The “feed-in tariff scheme for renewable energy” started on July 1, 2012. This scheme, called FIT (short for Feed-in Tariff), is operated based on a law^※1 under which the government made it mandatory for utilities to purchase electricity generated from renewable energy sources.^※2

※1　The name of the law is the “Act on Special Measures Concerning Procurement of Electricity from Renewable Energy Sources by Electricity Utilities.”

※2　The types of renewable energy subject to this scheme include solar, wind power, hydropower (less than 30,000 kW), geothermal, and biomass.

The government supports deployment of renewable energy.

Since it costs more to set up renewable energy facilities compared to facilities for other power sources, their deployment will be slow if they are left to do it alone. Therefore, the government has come in to support their deployment. The government has set the sales price of electricity which is generated efficiently using renewable energy sources, and made it mandatory for utilities to purchase such electricity.

Energy self-sufficiency is a only 9.5%.

The domestic energy self-sufficiency rate in 2017 is only 9.5%. Although nuclear power plants have been restarted, they are 1.3%, and 87.7% rely on fossil fuel from overseas such as oil and coal. In order to secure energy stably in future, securing resources that replace fossil fuels will be an issue.

Renewable energy will not be exhausted.

Renewable energy sources, which include solar, wind power, hydropower (less than 30,000 kW), geothermal, and biomass, can generate power through phenomena that occur repeatedly in the natural world. Hence these energy sources will not be exhausted and can be used sustainably.
These types of renewable energy resources are abundant in Japan, a nation blessed with nature.