「再エネ後進州」アラバマに72MWのメガソーラー稼働のワケ ウォルマート社の「再エネ100％」向けに建設、トヨタも続くか？

Published at Nikkei Technology Online --- 　米国南部に位置するアラバマ州は、先月トヨタ自動車とマツダが合併新工場の建設を発表したことで、ようやく日本でも知られるようになったが、太陽光発電に関して全米でも遅れた「再エネ・後進州」と見られている。

　アラバマ州は気候変動対策の取り組みや、再生可能エネルギー導入の普及政策もほとんどない。実際、カリフォルニア、ノースカロライナ、アリゾナ州など太陽光発電の導入が活発な州では通常、発電用太陽光発電所の導入を促進する再エネ導入基準（RPS法）と分散型太陽光発電用のネットメータリング制度を整備しているが、アラバマ州にはどちらもない。さらに、同州では、太陽光発電を電力会社の送配電網に接続する際の系統連系も標準化されていない。

　米国太陽エネルギー産業協会（SEIA）のデータによると、2017年9月末までに累積49.3GWの太陽光発電が全米で導入されている。そのうち、カリフォルニア州は40％強の20.1GWを占め、一方、アラバマ州はわずか約0.2%で128MWにすぎない。

　そんな中、2017年末アラバマ州で連系出力72MW （太陽光パネル容量111 MW）のメガソーラー（大規模太陽光発電所）が稼働を始めた（図1）。

図1●ウォルマート社の再エネ調達で設置された連系出力72MWのメガソーラー

（出所：Swinerton Renewable Energy）

再エネ「利用」に5つの選択肢

　RPS法もなく、ネットメータリング制度もないアラバマ州でメガソーラーが設置された理由は、「再エネ100％」を目標に掲げる企業の「再エネ・ニーズ」に対し、地元の電力会社が応えなければならなかったからだ。...Read More Here

The Asia Super Grid – Four Countries Join Together to Maximize Renewable Energy

Published at RenewableEnergyWorld.com --- The triple-disaster of earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown that hit the northeast of Japan in March 2011 was a wake-up call for many people. This was true for Masayoshi Son, a founder, chairman, and chief executive officer (CEO) of Softbank Group, a Japanese multinational telecommunications and internet corporation. Having experienced the danger of nuclear power plants in Fukushima, he felt the need to replace nuclear power with safer and cleaner renewable energy for a better future.

To accelerate the deployment of clean, safe, and affordable renewable energy, he founded the Renewable Energy Institute (REI), and in September 2011, the “Asia Super Grid (ASG)” was conceptualized. ASG goes beyond Japan and includes other Asia countries to further maximize the usage of renewable energy by taking advantage of diversity in loads and resources.

At an International Symposium this September to celebrate REI’s five-year Anniversary, Son happily announced that his “Vision of the ASG” was one step closer to materialization.

“When I announced my idea five years ago, many people said it is a crazy idea, and they also said that it is neither economically or politically feasible,” recalled Son. Despite these nay-sayers, he has been making steady progress.

The first step was to develop electricity generation plants domestically by creating SB Energy Corp. as part of the SoftBank Group in 2011. The company is now established and operating 33 utility-scaled renewable power plants nationwide, including a 48-MW wind farm in Shimane prefecture and a 111-MW solar PV farm in Hokkaido prefecture.

The company also looked outside Japan for more abundant renewable energy sources. Mongolia has vast wind resources, and to harness the potential, the company formed Clean Energy Asia LLC with Newcom LLC, a Mongolian conglomerate. The joint company has secured a land-leasing right in the Gobi Desert for the next 100 years to develop and operate 7 GW worth of wind farms. The company also formed a joint venture company called SBG Cleantech Ltd in India, with India’s Bharti Enterprises Pvt. and Taiwan’s Foxconn Technology Group, to develop a 350 MW solar PV farm in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh.

MOU Signed by Japan, China, South Korea, and Russia

Plenty of renewable energy generation has been secured and is under development. Now the question is how to move the renewable energy to Japan and throughout Asia....Read More Here

Representatives from Japan, South Korea, China, and Russia sign MOU in Beijing.
Image credit: SoftBank Group