Alliance for Renewable Energy

What Feed-in Tariffs Could Do for Japan's Electricity Shortage

 

What Japan Could Do if It Followed Germany's Lead on Renewable Energy

Within one Decade Japan Could Halve its Dependence on Nuclear Power

April 14, 2011

By Paul Gipe

If Japan adopted an aggressive renewable energy policy like that of Germany, it could, within ten years, generate more than four times the electricity lost at the Fukushima 1 nuclear power plant, cutting the country's reliance on nuclear power by one-half or more.

As Japan expands the evacuation zone around the damaged Fukushima 1 nuclear plant from 20 km to 30 km and Tokyo Electric Power (TEPCO) skirts the edge of bankruptcy, the country confronts a stark choice: undertake a massive construction program to replace the nuclear reactors with more of the same, or, instead, follow a new, less risky, and potentially more strategic path toward rapid renewable energy development. The stakes are high and the fight is already intense as Japanese elites debate the future of their electricity system, and literally, the future of their country.

Feed-in Tariffs in Lebanon: A Master's Thesis

Hamed Beheshti, a Master's student at the American University of Beirut, has just published his Master's Thesis, "Exploring Renewable Energy Policy in Lebanon: Feed-in Tariff as a Policy Tool in the Electricity Sector." This in-depth paper utilized the research and reports available on the ARE website.

We highly encourage you to read this paper if you are interested in learning how Lebanon or other Middle Eastern countries could adopt a FIT policy; the paper deftly outlines the challenges involved in enacting Lebanese FIT legislation.

The author has graciously given us permission to publish his thesis on the ARE website. Download it here:  Exploring Renewable Energy Policy in Lebanon: Feed-in Tariff as a Policy Tool in the Electricity Sector

(Photo shared by Flickr user austinevan under a Creative Commons license.)

What's New with Feed-In Tariffs?

From Paul Gipe (Wind-Works.org):

• We Actually Can?! by Miguel Mendonça--When first writing on this site a few years ago, and advocating the feed-in tariff policy for market development of renewables, there were no such laws in Britain or North America. They are now coming into being, and this is in part due to the fact that initially small, but ever-snowballing groups of people, made it their business to push for legislative progress. . .
• South Africa's Nersa makes Refit phase two decision; contracts expected in November by Christy van der Merwe--The National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) on Friday published it’s decision on the second phase of the Renewable Energy Feed-in Tariff (Refit), and stated that the power purchase agreement could be expected in November. . .
• What solar will cost in Germany by Craig Morris--The RWI study is therefore roughly 50 percent off the mark according to her calculation, i.e. solar is not that expensive. . .
• Michael Eckhart, ACORE, on the RWI "study" of German FITs--So, they figure, if they are to justify coal and nuclear, they must first discredit the FIT. . .
• Craig Morris German PV Investment Summary
• Germany Installs 2.34GW, FIT to Decline 9-11% by Ucilia Wang, Greentech Media--Demand in Germany has picked up since mid-year. The new ruling coalition seeks to calm fears of a cut to the country’s solar incentives. . .
• Globe & Mail: New rules could fuel green bonanza--Ontario's new Green Energy Act could pump as much as $4.5-billion into the hands of the province's renewable energy companies, utilities and power distribution firms. . .
• German coalition steers away from solar tariff cuts--The recently elected German coalition government has dropped plans for major cuts to solar photovoltaic (PV) feed-in tariffs. . .
• New York Times: Worldwide Feed-in Tariffs Best for Investors By John Lorinc--Countries that adopt policies obliging utilities to purchase a percentage of their power from renewable sources at above-market prices ­ also known as a “feed-in tariff” ­ represent the safest harbors for investors looking to finance clean-energy ventures, according to a broad-ranging risk analysis released Monday by Deutsche Bank’s global asset management group and Columbia University’s Earth Institute. . .
• Grist: Why solar won’t topple in Germany by Craig Morris--Since the new center-right coalition won the elections a few weeks ago in Germany, onlookers from the U.S. have been expecting the country to drastically cut its support for solar. . .
• Reuters: New German government won't slash solar power rates--Germany's conservatives and their Free Democrat allies will reform the Renewable Energy Act (EEG) but cuts for solar power rates will be modest to prevent harming the fast-growing industry, a coalition source said on Sunday. .