Japan’s Potential Enhanced by Renewable Energy

Global warming is an urgent issue for our planet. Climate change, which is considered to be caused by global warming, has had various impacts and caused damage to various parts of the world. The global community has started to take action on a full scale to address global warming. The Paris Agreement was adopted at the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP21). It aims to limit the global average temperature increase to below 2°C compared to pre-industrial levels and pursue efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1.5°C. The goal is to realize a decarbonized society, where emissions of greenhouse gases, including CO2, are reduced to net-zero on a global scale. In response, certain countries, mainly in Europe, have launched national efforts to achieve a decarbonized society by 2050. It is still fresh in our memory that Japan also made a similar declaration in October 2020.

To realize a decarbonized society, it is considered to be effective to introduce renewable energy using wind power and photovoltaic power to replace fossil fuels. In 2012, the Japanese government launched the feed-in tariff (FIT) program to spread and expand the use of renewable energy in the aftermath of the Great East Japan Earthquake. Electric power companies were required to purchase electricity derived from renewable energy at a price designated by the national government for a certain period. This developed momentum toward the introduction of renewable energy. Against this backdrop, the Sumitomo Electric Group participated in Japan’s largest wind power generation project in Tsugaru City, Aomori Prefecture. This adventurous challenge to establish a new business model for the Sumitomo Electric Group beyond the supply of electric cables was driven by the Group’s sense of mission as a player in the electricity business to create a sustainable future.