Girasol Energy to apply for "qualified operator" status for small-scale solar aggregation
In the Kyushu area, we are collaborating with JR Kyushu, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking, and Fuyo General Lease.
Scheme
(Source: Joint release by JR Kyushu, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking, Fuyo General Lease, and Girasol Energy)
Business image
(Source: Joint release by the four companies)
Image of repowering
(Source: Joint release by the four companies)
Scene from the press conference
(Source: Nikkei BP)
Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu), Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation, Fuyo General Lease, and Girasol Energy (Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo) are working on a project to acquire, consolidate, and operate small and medium-sized solar power plants in the Kyushu area. On March 25, they announced that they had signed an anonymous partnership agreement with Hyakunen Solar Kyushu LLC, the main operator of the project.
In Japan, the majority of solar power plants newly constructed under the Feed-in Tariff (FIT) scheme are low-voltage commercial solar power plants with grid-connected output of 10kW or more and less than 50kW. This ratio accounts for more than 80% in terms of number and about half in terms of output. Low-voltage commercial solar power plants, which are distributed in many locations, have lower O&M (operation and maintenance) efficiency than mega solar (large-scale solar power plants). As a result, there is a high possibility that many power generation companies will withdraw after the end of the FIT period due to the drop in selling prices. If this happens, there is a concern that solar power, which increased due to the public burden caused by FIT, will suddenly decrease.
The Hyakunen Solar Kyushu project will be run as a special purpose company (SPC) using the GK-TK method (an investment scheme in which a limited liability company is invested in by anonymous association), with investments from JR Kyushu, Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation, Fuyo General Lease, and Girasol Energy (Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo). In addition, local financial institution Higo Bank will provide financing. Using the funds raised, the company will acquire small-scale solar power plants, such as low-voltage commercial plants, in the Kyushu area, with a target of a total output of 10MW by 2027.
The solar power plants to be acquired are expected to number around 200, and Girasol Energy will efficiently operate and manage them using its proprietary remote monitoring technology, while also providing O&M and asset management (AM) services such as evaluating and analyzing performance and carrying out repowering. After the end of the FIT program, the company aims to sell electricity to power consumers through PPAs (power purchase agreements) through its investing companies.
The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry has been aware of the issue for some time about how to ensure the long-term, stable continuation of low-voltage commercial solar power generation after the end of FIT, and has announced a system to certify "long-term stable qualified solar power generation operators" in each region and consolidate dispersed power plants. If certified as a qualified operator, there are benefits such as simplification of the requirements for changing the name of commercial solar power generation.
Girasol Energy President Lee Min said, "We would like to aim to be certified as a qualified operator in order to reduce the administrative costs associated with consolidating power plants."
The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry has listed the following requirements for eligible businesses: (1) they must be a responsible entity that can gain the trust of the local community, (2) they must be able to carry out their business stably over the long term, and (3) they must be able to carry out their business without relying on the FIT/FIP system.
Specifically, for (1), the government will require a commitment to coexistence with the community and ensuring safety, based on a track record of compliance with laws and regulations. For (2), the government will require mid-term management plans to set quantitative targets such as the scale (capacity) of solar power to be consolidated and the duration of the business, and follow-ups will be conducted annually, but will not set the duration of the business or the scale (capacity) of the consolidated power as certification requirements. For (3), the government will require a track record of operating a solar power business of a certain scale or more in a competitive environment, in order to confirm that the business can be operated independently even after the support measures under FIT/FIP end. Specifically,
the government announced a certification requirement of 50MW or more in non-FIT/non-FIP business, or FIT/FIP certified business since fiscal year 2017, when the bidding system was introduced.
If the venture company Girasol Energy serves as asset manager in a consolidation project under the GK-TK scheme such as this one, attention will be focused on how these certification requirements will be judged in the future.
