ABSTRACT
Japan has been one of the leading countries in dissemination
of PV system and production of solar cells. Japan’s efforts on
PV power generation started in early 70s. While PV market in
Japan experienced stagnation for these three years, it is expected
that Japan’s PV market will be revitalized again from 2009 as
a new national target for PV capacity was set and new support
framework for introduction of PV system has started. In July 2008,
the cabinet announced the “Action Plan to Create a Low-carbon
Society”. This plan widely covers specific targets and measures
regarding innovative technological development, dissemination of
existing advanced technologies, and establishment of a framework
to transform the entire nation into a low-carbon society. As for
PV power generation, the national target was set, increasing
introduction volume of PV power generation by 10 times (to 14
GW) by 2020 and by 40 times (to 53 GW) by 2030 from the current
levels. Moreover, the government raised the target capacity to 28 GW
by 2020 under the J-Recovery Plan formulated in April 2009. This
chapter reviews the history of PV deployment and industry in Japan.
The Sunshine Project, a national technological research and devel-
opment (R&D) for new energy source, was started in 1974 under
the initiative of the Ministry of International Trade and Industry
(MITI), [currently the Ministry of Economy and Technology and
Industry (METI)], triggered by the oil crisis in 1973. The Sunshine
Project aimed to reduce dependency on petroleum and improve
the vulnerable energy supply structure. Under the project, long-
term R&D activities were conducted by cooperation of the industry,
the government and academics, foreseeing the year 2000, with
the emphasis on (1) solar energy, (2) geothermal energy, (3)
gasification and liquefaction of coal and (4) hydrogen energy. The
photovoltaic power generation system (PV system) was categorized
under the area of the solar energy, and fundamental and application
R&D of solar cells and the PV system were started. In the
early 1980s, New Energy and Industrial Technology Development
Organization (NEDO) promoted R&D and demonstration (R&D, D)
for practical application of the PV system, focusing on development
of manufacturing technologies of the solar cell and application
technologies of the PV system, aiming at cost reduction. A lot of
researchers from the industry, universities, and national institutes
working on R&D of the solar cell and the PV system were cultivated
through the projects of NEDO in these years, and the foundation of
today’s framework of R&D and the market development were built.
The R&D has been continued throughout the 2000s and the results
from the R&D were commercialized into the PV products by the PV
manufacturers in Japan.
