The country will add an additional 6.1 GW to 9.4 GW of solar energy by the end of the year.
Japan is likely to become the world’s second largest solar market by the end of the year,thanks to a nationwide incentive program that offers above-market rates for energy sourced through renewable outlets.
The huge rise in the number of commercial and utility-scale projects will greatly increase solar panel installations to an estimated range of 6.1 GW to 9.4 GW by the end of 2013, greatly exceeding earlier estimates of a growth of between 3.2 GW to 4 GW.
The news of the mass increase of solar energy means Japan will most likely be placed ahead of the US in terms of the growth of the countries solar production this year. The US forecasts to add an additional 3.3 GW to 3.9 GW in 2013 while China is estimated to finish the year with an additional 6.2 GW to 10.5 GW of renewable solar power.
According to reports from the Japan Photovoltaic Energy Association, Japan’s domestic shipments of solar cells and modules more than doubled to 1,003 megawatts in the three months ending on December 31 compared with the same quarter the previous year.
A factor in the push for alternative energy sources by Japan could be the dangers of Nuclear power, highlighted in the devastating Fukushima earthquake and tsunami in March 2011, which led to the closure of all but two of the nation’s nuclear reactors.
